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PETER    GOTT, 


T  IT  IS 


CAPE  ANN  FISHERMAN, 


BV 

, 

REYNOLDS,   IV).  D. 


FOURTH    THOUSAND. 


BOSTON: 

PUBLISHED  BY  JOHN  P.  JEWETT  &  COMPANY. 

CLEVELAND,  OHIO  : 

JEWETT,    PROCTOR    &    WORTHINGTON. 
NEW  YORK  :    SHELDON,  ULAKBMAN  AND  COMI'ANV. 

1856. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress  In  the  year  1856,  by 

JOHN  T.  JEWETT  &  COMPANY, 
in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  District  of  Massachusetts 


AMERICAN  STEREOTYPE  COMPANY,  28  PHfENIX  BUILDING,  CORNER  OF 
DEVONSHIRE  STREET  AND   EXCHANGE  PLACE,   BOSTON. 


PRINTED  BY  D.   S.   FORD   AND   COMPANY. 


CONSENTS. 


/INTRODUCTION,       ...  ...          7 

CHAPTER  I. 
Winter  fishing.  —  Pigeon  Cove.  —  Gloucester  Harbor,       .        13 


CHAPTER  II. 

Mr.  Dennis.  —  Sandy  Bay.  —  An  incident  of  the  last  war 
with  Great  Britain.  —  Fishermen  and  their  owners.  — 
Settlement  of  Cape  Ann,  ......  26 


CHAPTER  III. 

Peter's  parents.  —  His  father  goes  to  the  Banks.  —  Bank 
fishing,          .........        36 


CHAPTER  IV- 

Fishermen's    grub.  —  Fogs.  —  The  Grand  Banks.  —  Troll 

fishing,          .........        52 

(3) 


L555 


IV  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 

Peter's  father  lost  on  the  Banks. — The  vessel  returns  to 
Pigeon  Cove. — The  news  of  a  man  lost,  reaches  there 
before  her, 63 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Mr.  Dennis  informs  Peter's  mother  of  her  sad  loss. — 
Kind  neighbors. — The  afflictions  of  the  poor. — A 
widow's  struggles,  and  her  reward,  .  .  .  .  75 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Peter's  boyhood. — His  early  education. — Engages  in  shore 
fishing. — Visit  to  the  harbor  with  his  mother,  .  .  87 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Hake  fishing. — Making  isinglass, 98 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Peter's  first  trip  to  the  Banks. — How  the  earnings  of  Bank 
fishermen  are  divided. — Peter's  care  for  Ins  family. — 
Second  trip. — A  storm,  and  its  consequences,  .  .  107 

CHAPTER  X. 

Pollock  fishing. — Lobster  catching. — Political  troubles,    .       120 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Peter  ships  on  board  a  privateer. — Is  taken  and  carried 
to  Halifax. — Dartmoor  prison, 1.31 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Return  home. — Changes  at  home,  ...  144 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Peter  becomes  skipper  of  a  fishing  vessel. — Labrador 
fishing. — Clannish  feeling. — Peter  builds  a  house,  and 
marries  a  wife, -  .  151 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Mackerel  fishing. — Peter's  entcrprize. — Bait  mills,  .  1 RA 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Smuggling. — Treaties. — Revenue  cutters, 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

Peter  thinks  of  quitting  fishing. — Goes  one  trip  more. — 
A  terrible  storm,  .        .        .  •. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

Kindness  of  the  people  of  Prince  Edward's  Island. — The 
storm  ceases. — They  repair  damages  as  far  as  they 
can,  and  return  home. — The  loss  of  a  year's  work,  .  213 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Peter  Gott  builds  a  vessel  after  a  new  model. — Goes  to 
the  Banks  in  her,  and  to  the  Bay  of  St.  Lawrence  again. 

— Bounty  laws, 226 

1* 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

Forms  a  partnership  with  Mr.  Dennis. — His  family. — 
Schools. — A  busy  life. — Dissolves  partnership. — A 
new  store  and  a  new  firm. — Voyage  to  the  West 
Indies, 242 

CHAPTER  XX. 

Mullet  fishing. — Clam  digging. — Peter  Gott  gradually 
withdraws  from  the  business  of  the  firm. — Becomes  a 
cultivator  of  the  soil.— Goes  to  the  legislature.— His 
character,  and  the  closing  scenes  of  his  life,  .  .  .  256 


INTRODUCTION. 


THE  object  of  the  following  pages  is  to  exhibit 
the  e  very-day  life  of  the  fishermen,  whether  ashore, 
on  the  Banks,  or  at  the  Bay.  The  incidents  are 
not  fictitious,  are  not  exaggerated,  are  not  too 
highly  colored.  They  may  not  have  occurred  in 
the  exact  chronological  order  in  which  they  are 
here  set  down,  but  hundreds  of  fishermen  can  tes 
tify  to  their  truth,  from  their  own  experience. 

Very  few  of  his  fellow  citizens  understand  any 
thing  of  the  nature  of  the  employment  by  which 
the  fisherman  is  enabled  to  draw  his  daily  bread 
from  the  briny  deep.  Some  may  have  dozed  over 
the  pages  of  "  gentle  Isaak  Walton,"  and  enjoyed 
the  pictures  of  still  life,  which  he  has  so  graphically 

(7) 


Vlll  INTRODUCTION. 

drawn.  They  see  the  old  man  seated  under  the 
shade  of  a  decayed  willow,  in  the  quiet  autumn 
days,  or  stretched  at  length  on  the  grassy  brink  of 
some  gently  flowing  stream,  watching  his  baited 
hook, — and  they  will  think  they  have  some  idea  of 
fishing.  Others  may  have  whiled  away  some  hours, 
with  a  pleasant  companion,  on  a  cloudy  morning, 
angling  for  trout  or  pickerel,  and  think  they  know 
something  about  fishing.  Some  may  have  visited 
the  shore,  in  the  sultry  days  of  August,  to  enjoy 
the  cool  breezes  from  the  sea; — they  may  have 
sailed  ^out  into  the  bay,  with  a  fishing  party,  under 
the  care  of  a  trusty  skipper,  furnished  with  all  the 
fixings  necessary  to  enable  them  to  have  a  good 
time,  and  returned  at  evening,  tired  with  the  day's 
sport,— and  this  is  all  they  know  of  the  life  of  the 
fisherman , 

Landsmen,  I  believe,  generally  suppose  that 
fishermen  pursue  their  business  only  in  pleasant 
weather,  when  the  sun  shines,  and  the  waves  are 
calm  around  them.  Little  do  they  think  of  the 
storms,  the  howling  winds,  the  heaving  billows, 
the  rock-bound  coast ;  the  long,  dark  nights,  the 


INTRODUCTION.  IX 

anxious  hours  and  days  and  weeks,  in  which  they 
stand  their  watch,  battling  with  unremitting  strife 
and  sleepless  eyes,  the  fiercely  assailing  waves. 
They  are  lying  to,  on  George's  Bank,  in  a  stormy 
night.  They  must  keep  their  little  craft  head  on 
to  the  sea.  If  they  suffer  it  to  broach  to  for  a 
moment,  the  coming  wave,  thundering  and  roaring, 
with  its  foaming  crest  higher  than  the  head  of 
their  mast,  may  bury  them  many  fathoms  deep 
beneath  the  green  waters.  A  watchful  eye,  a 
steady  hand  and  a  bold  heart  needs  the  fisherman 
on  such  a  night  as  this.  He  thinks  not  of  him 
self  alone  ;  his  thoughts  are  with  the  loved  ones 
at  home  ;  and  he  knows,  too,  that  they  are  think 
ing  of  him, — that  their  prayers  are  besieging  the 
throne  of  Mercy  in  his  behalf.  He,  too,  prays 
to  the  God  of  the  orphan  and  widow,  for  he 
doubts  if  he  shall  see  his  wife  and  children  again. 
0,  how  he  longs  for  the  morning !  And  when  it 
comes,  it  brings  him  no  relief  from  his  life-struggle. 
He  rises  upon  the  crest  of  a  mountain  wave,  and 
far  as  his  eye  can  reach,  the  ocean  is  one  white 
field  of  foam.  But  he  catches,  or  fancies  that  he 


X  INTRODUCTION. 

catches,  a  glimpse  of  the  schooner  with  which  he 
sailed  in  company,  lying  upon  her  beam  ends  at  no 
great  distance  from  him,  and  he  thinks  of  the  fate 
of  these  playmates  of  his  boyhood  and  youth ; — and 
then  he  goes  down,  down  into  the  green  depths  of 
ocean,  until  he  fears  that  the  next  moment  his  keel 
will  strike  upon  its  oozy  bed.  And  now  only  the 
master  and  mate,  and  one  well-tried  hand,  can  be 
trusted  with  the  helm,  and  they  must  be  lashed,  in 
turn,  to  the  rudder  head.  And  thus  they  heave 
and  toss  through  the  livelong  day.  As  the  sun  is 
setting,  a  gleam  of  light  is  seen  in  the  west.  The 
wind  hauls  round  in  the  course  of  the  night,  and 
the  wild  and  broken  clouds  disperse,  the  stars  shine 
out,  and  the  storm  is  past.  The  morning  sun,  as  it 
rises  from  its  ocean  bed,  shines  brightly  upon  him. 
0,  how  glad  and  thankful  is  his-  heart. 

But  he  cannot  resume  his  labor.  The  ocean 
heaves  and  swells  for  two  or  three  days,  before  it 
becomes  so  calm  that  he  can  drop  his  line  into  its 
depths.  He  waits  patiently,  and  at  length  begins 
anew  his  toil.  But,  perhaps,  before  he  has  com 
pleted  his  fare  of  halibut  or  cod,  the  wind  suddenly 


INTRODUCTION.  XI 

chops  round  into  the  north-east,  and  he  has  to  en 
counter  a  storm  from  that  quarter.  The  wind  is 
cold  ;  the  sharp  sleet  cuts  like  a  knife,  whenever  he 
turns  his  face  to  the  wind.  His  deck  is  loaded  with 
snow  :  his  rigging  is  stiff  and  immovable  from  ice  ; 
he  stands  through  his  long  watch,  in  the  face  of  the 
howling  wind,  noting  the  sleet  and  snow  as  they 
drift  past  him  upon  the  surface  of  the  water.  No 
cessation,  no  rest  does  he  know.  And  thus,  for 
two,  three  or  four  days,  does  this  second  life-battle 
last ;  and  at  the  end  of  sixteen  or  twenty  days,  he 
returns  to  port,  with  half  a  fare,  and  with  the  loss 
of  his  boats  or  of  a  cable  and  anchor.  In  hundreds 
of  instances  has  this  experience  been  verified  in  the 
winter  fishing  on  George's  Bank.  Scarcely  a  sea 
son  passes  in  which  two  or  three  crews  are  not  lost 
in  this  business.  How  little  do  we,  who  are  lying 
snugly  in  our  beds,  know  of  the  matter  ! 

Believing  that  the  Life  of  PETER  GOTT  would 
interest  landsmen  as  well  as  seamen,  not  only  in  his 
simple,  brave  and  affectionate  character,  but  in  the 
class  of  men  which  he  represents,  I  have  told  his 


Xll  INTRODUCTION. 

story  in  a  plain,  straight-forward  style,  throwing  into 
the  narrative  such  statistical  and  explanatory  re 
marks  as  will  enable  my  readers  to  understand 
something  of  the  nature  and  importance  of  our  fish 
eries,  as  one  of  the  great  industrial  pursuits  of  New 
England,  and  of  their  bearing  upon  the  commerce 
and  navigation  of  the  country. 

CONCORD.  DEC.  20,  1855. 


PETER    GOTT. 


CHAPTER   I. 

WINTER     FISHING.  — PIGEON     COVE. —GLOUCESTER 
HARBOR. 

AH,  Pete,  you  are  in  luck  this  time !  your 
dory  fleets.  Well,  take  in  your  killick,  and 
Idle  up  the  painter ;  then  give  my  dory  a 
shove ;  may  be  you'll  want  a  lift  to-morrow. 
That's  good.  Heave,  yo  !  There  she  goes  ! 
once  more  !  good  !  There  she  fleets. 

Well,  Abe,  it  looks  rather  gusty.  What '11 
it  be  to-day  ?  will  the  wind  come  up  with 
the  sun  ? 

I  hope  not.  It  was  so  rough  yesterday  I 
did  nothing,  and  I  have  done  but  little  for 
a  whole  month.  Now  fish  brings  a  good 
price,  I  wish  we  might  have  a  long  spell  of 
good  weather. 


14  PETER    GOTT, 

Well,  we  must  take  it  as  it  comes.  Where 
are  you  going  this  time  ? 

I  think  I  shall  go  out  back-side  of  Sal 
vage's.  The  last  time  I  was  there  fish  was 
plenty. 

That's  a  long  pull.  I  thought  I  would 
go  on  to  the  flat  ground. 

I  was  there  yesterday.  Found  fish  scace. 
Come,  let 's  pull  outside.  I  should  like  your 
company. 

Well,  here  she  goes ! 

The  above  dialogue  took  place  just  as 
the  day  began  to  dawn  in  the  east,  between 
Peter  Gott  and  Abraham  Tarr,  upon  the 
beach  at  Pigeon  Cove.     This  cove  is  formed 
by  two  ledges  of  rocks   jutting  out  into 
Sandy  Bay,  with  a  narrow  opening  between 
their  extremities;    thus  forming   a   small 
basin,  in  which  a  number  of  boats  and  fish 
ing  schooners  might  lie,  in  comparatively 
still  water,  the  force  of  the  sea  being  broken 
by  the  ledges.     When  severe  storms  oc 
curred,  and  the  wind  was  east,  the  sea  beat 
over  these  ledges  in  one  complete  mass  of 
foam,  and  the  fishing  craft  lying  inside  were 


THE    CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  15 

often  driven  on  to  the  beach,  or  pitched 
and  plunged  against  each  other,  to  their 
very  great  damage,  and  sometimes  to  their 
total  loss.  Often,  if  the  coming  storm  was 
foreseen  in  season,  the  schooners  would  run 
across  the  bay,  and  rounding  the  point  of 
Bearskin  Neck,  would  take  shelter  in  Long 
Cove.  If  the  wind  continued  to  blow  from 
the  north-east  or  north,  they  rode  out  the 
gale  in  safety.  But  if  it  blew  directly  from 
the  east,  they  were  not  unfrequcntly  driven 
on  to  the  beach  even  here.  If  it  was  late 
in  the  season,  and  the  storm  had  been  brew 
ing  for  several  days,  so  that  they  antici 
pated  a  long  storm,  the  larger  craft  more 
generally  ran  round  Eastern  Point,  and  laid 
up  in  Gloucester  Harbor. 

This  harbor  is  sheltered  on  all  sides,  ex 
cept  the  south-west,  and  is  the  safest  harbor 
on  the  coast ;  and  here,  in  former  days,  all 
the  larger  vessels  employed  in  the  fishing 
business,  belonging  to  the  smaller  and  more 
exposed  harbors  and  coves  around  the  Cape, 
were  accustomed  to  lay  up  for  the  winter. 
Now  that  breakwaters  and  artificial  harbors 


16  PETER   GOTT, 

are  built  at  Sandy  Bay,  Pigeon  Cove  and 
Lane's  Cove,  this  is  less  frequently  done 
than  formerly.  But  many  of  the  more  val 
uable  vessels  from  these  places,  and  most  of 
the  vessels  from  Essex  and  many  from  Man 
chester,  continue  to  lay  up  here  to  the 
present  day,  as  they  lie  more  quietly  and 
are  less  exposed  to  injury,  and  can  be  read 
ily  got  out  when  they  are  wanted.  Many 
a  time,  in  a  cold  November  night,  have 
these  hardy  sons  of  the  ocean  turned  out 
of  their  warm  berths,  and  finding  the  wind 
blowing  from  the  north-east,  in  sharp  and 
spiteful  gusts,  and  black  masses  of  broken 
clouds  tumbling  and  careering  through  the 
sky,  and  now  and  then  spitting  small,  dry 
flakes  of  snow,  or  sharp  needles  of  frozen 
mist,  they  have  hauled  on  their  thick  fish 
ing  boots,  their  Kersey  jackets  and  their 
woollen  neck  cloths,  and  hoisted  their  sails 
and  beat  out  of  the  bay,  and  running 
through  the  strait  that  separates  Thatcher's 
Island  from  the  main,  have  passed  to  the 
windward  of  Salt  Island,  rounded  Monu 
ment  Point,  and  beat  into  Gloucester  liar- 


THE    CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  17 

bor  in  the  midst  of  a  thick  snow  storm,  or 
with  the  sleet  and  the  rain  driving  full  into 
their  faces. 

They  are  all  skilful  pilots  into  this  har 
bor,  and  can  find  their  way  into  it  in  the 
darkest  night  After  passing  the  Point, 
they  stretch  over  towards  the  Stage  Rocks ; 
then  hauling  upon  the  other  tack,  they  lay 
the  head  of  the  vessel  for  Ten  Pound  Island 
Light;  then  tacking  again,  they  run  for 
Fort  Point ;  then  hauling  again,  they  run 
between  this  and  Ten  Pound  Island,  stretch 
ing  over  towards  Rocky  Neck.  The  next 
tack  lays  her  head  towards  Harbor  Cove ; 
they  run  in  this  direction  till  they  are  on 
a  line  between  Duncan's  Point  and  Fort 
Point,  and  the  next  tack  brings  them  in 
side  of  Harbor  Rock;  there  they  drop  their 
anchor,  haul  down  their  sails  and  make  all 
snug.  They  now  go  ashore  in  their  little 
boat,  and  landing  at  Pearce's  Wharf,  or 
Duncan's  Point,  start  for  home,  a  distance 
of  six  miles,  right  in  the  eye  of  the  wind, 
encumbered  with  their  thick  boots  and 
heavy  wet  jackets.  On  they  go,  tramp, 
i* 


18  PETER   GOTT, 

tramp,  for  three  mortal  hours,  and  reach 
their  homes  about  noon  ;  and  this,  perhaps, 
without  having  had  a  morsel  of  food  since 
their  supper,  the  evening  before.  Usually 
three,  but  sometimes  only  two  hands  came 
round  with  the  craft  on  these  occasions. 
When  the  wind  is  boisterous  and  the  night 
is  dark,  it  is  not  only  an  adventure  of  a 
toilsome  and  exhausting  nature,  but  one  of 
great  hazard.  Few  veteran  sailors  would 
undertake  it  unless  driven  to  it  by"  neces 
sity.  But  these  men,  inured  to  toil  from 
their  childhood,  cradled  among  the  rocks, 
hardy  and  fearless,  when  they  set  foot  upon 
the  deck  of  a  favorite  boat,  know  no  dan 
ger.  Their  craft  behaves  like  a  thing  of 
life,  and  seems  obedient  to  the  word  of  com 
mand.  It  is  sometimes  wonderful  to  see 
these  schooners  winding  their  way  between 
rocks  and  ledges,  doubling  the  sharpest 
points,  and  shooting  up  in  the  very  teeth 
of  the  wind,  as  though  conscious  of  their 
danger,  and  aware  of  the  only  course  by 
which  it  could  be  avoided.  These  fishing 
boats  were  made  on  purpose  to  swim,  and 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.  19 

there  are  no  better  sea  boats  in  the  world, 
and  none  that  will  hold  on  better  when 
beating  against  the  wind.  We  shall  have 
opportunity  to  make  their  acquaintance 
and  learn  their  qualities  in  the  course  of 
our  narrative. 

Peter  and  Abe  pulled  on,  side  by  side. 
Leaving  Pigeon  Hill  to  the  north-west,  they 
passed  to  the  north  of  the  ledge  known  by 
the  name  of  Salvages  since  the  early  set 
tlement  of  the  country.  Our  Pilgrim  fa 
thers  spelt  the  word  savages  in  that  way, 
and  it  is  supposed  they  gave  this  name  to 
that  dangerous  mass  of  rocks,  from  the  wild 
and  savage  aspect  which  they  presented, 
as  they  approached  the  extremity  of  the 
Cape.  They  continued  to  pull  on  till  they 
had  reached  about  a  mile  to  the  eastward 
of  the  ledge.  By  this  time,  the  sun  began 
to  shoot  his  golden  rays  athwart  the  ocean, 
and  the  sheen  from  the  rippled  surface  was 
like  the  reflection  from  ten  thousand  mov 
ing  mirrors. 

Pete  and  Abe  now  took  their  berths 
within  speaking  distance  of  each  other,  un- 


20  PETER    GOTT, 

shipped  their  oars,  threw  over  their  killicks, 
and  prepared  to  engage  in  the  business  of 
the  day.  But  first,  each  took  out  from  un 
der  the  seat  in  the  stern  of  his  dory,  a  par 
cel  wrapped  in  a  brown  paper,  which  he 
carefully  unfolded,  and  took  out  a  portion 
of  cold  meat  and  bread,  which  he  had 
brought  from  his  home.  Having  eaten 
this,  and  drank  a  draught  of  cold  coffee 
from  the  earthen  jug  which  held  his  daily 
supply,  and  carefully  replaced  the  paper 
and  the  jug,  the  contents  of  which  were 
reserved  for  a  lunch  in  the  middle  of  the 
day,  each  now  charged  his  hook  with  a 
clam  from  a  bucket  standing  near  the  stern? 
threw  over  his  sinker,  and  cast  off  the  line 
from  his  reel. 

The  day's  work  was  now  fairly  begun. 
In  about  ten  minutes  each  had  hauled  in  a 
fine  fish ;  and  thus  they  continued  for  about 
five  hours,  sometimes  taking  in  three  or 
four  in  rapid  succession,  then  waiting  fifteen 
or  twenty  minutes  for  a  bite.  At  the  end 
of  this  time  each  had  taken  from  thirty  to 
forty  fish,  cod  and  haddock. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  21 

And  now  they  began  to  think  it  was 
time  to  make  for  the  shore.  First,  they 
ate  up  what  remained  of  the  morning 
meal,  then  reeled  up  the  line,  hauled  in 
the  killick,  set  their  bows  for  Pigeon  Cove, 
and  now  came  the  hardest  part  of  the  toil 
of  the  day.  The  weight  of  the  fish  which 
they  had  caught  caused  their  dories  to 
draw  more  water  than  they  did  in  the 
morning.  They  were  fatigued  with  the 
labors  of  the  day.  The  wind  had  chopped 
round  into  the  north-west.  A  short  sea 
was  running,  but  they  were  used  to  such  a 
termination  of  their  day's  toil,  and  were  no 
ways  discouraged.  They  pulled  away  with 
patience  and  perseverance,  and  about  three 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon  they  reached  the 
mouth  of  the  cove.  Here  they  found  a 
heavy  swell;  but  watching  their  chance, 
they  shot  between  the  points  of  the  ledges, 
and  run  their  dories  upon  the  beach. 

And  now,  kind  reader,  you  think  the 
day's  work  is  over,  and  they  will  go  to 
their  homes,  and  get  a  warm  dinner,  and 
put  on  some  clean  clothes,  and  spend  the 


22  PETER   GOTT, 

evening  in  comfort.  Not  quite  so  fast. 
There  is  more  work  to  be  done.  As  they 
entered  the  mouth  of  the  cove  they  noticed 
three  or  four  wagons  standing  by  the  side 
of  a  row  of  small,  black,  dilapidated  build 
ings,  called  fish  houses.  These  wagons  be 
long  to  hawkers,  who  come  here  to  buy  the 
fish,  as  they  are  brought  in  fresh  from  the 
water.  As  soon  as  the  dories  have  struck 
the  beach,  these  men  come  down  to  see 
how  many  fish  they  have  taken.  They 
will  not  make  an  offer  yet.  They  will  wait 
till  all  the  boats  get  in.  There  have  been 
a  good  many  out,  and  they  hope  they  will 
bring  in  good  fares ;  then  they  will  be  able 
to  get  them  three  or  five  cents  a  hundred 
cheaper. 

In  the  meanwhile,  the  fish  are  to  be  dress 
ed.  So  taking  his  clam  bucket  and  reel, 
the  fisherman  goes  to  the  fish-house  where 
he  keeps  his  gear,  and  depositing  them  in 
their  proper  places,  he  takes  his  handbar- 
row,  his  oil  bucket,  and  a  sharp  knife,  and 
returns  to  his  boat.  Then  placing  his  bar 
row  athwart  the  bows,  he  takes  his  stand  in 
the  water  by  its  side.  Then  seizing  a  fish 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  23 

by  the  head- with  his  left  hand,  he  makes  a 
cut  across  the  throat,  just  hehind  the  gills ; 
then  slitting  down  the  belly  with  one  stroke, 
he  seizes  the  liver  between  the  edge  of  his 
knife  and  the  thumb  of  his  right  hand,  and 
detaching  it  from  its  connections  drops  it 
into  his  oil  bucket  which  stands  before  him, 
towards  the  stern.  Now  dropping  his  knife 
upon  a  thwart,  he  seizes  the  whole  mass  of 
entrails  in  his  right  hand,  and  holding  the 
fish  firmly  in  his  left,  tears  out  the  whole 
with  a  sudden  jerk,  and  throws  it  into  the 
water.  Then  he  throws  the  fish  into  the 
barrow,  and  seizing  another  with  his  left 
hand,  and  his  knife  with  his  right,  goes 
through  with  the  same  motions.  Thus  he 
procee.ds  with  the  rapidity  and  regularity  of 
a  machine,  until  the  fish  are  all  transferred 
from  the  bottom  of  the  dory  into  the  hand- 
barrow.  He  now  carries  up  his  oil  bucket, 
and  empties  the  livers  into  a  cask  or  butt 
which  he  keeps  for  the  purpose.  He  is 
now  ready  to  dispose  of  his  fish.  If  the 
boats  are  all  in,  and  the  fares  are  not  very 
large,  the  hawkers  will  offer  seventy-five 


24  PETER   GOTT, 

cents  a  hundred.  After  a  good  deal  of 
haggling,  Peter  gets  eighty  cents  for  his. 
Taking  them  to  the  scale,  which  stands 
near  the  passage  leading  down  to  the  beach, 
they  are  found  to  weigh  150  pounds.  They 
are  now  taken  to  the  wagon  of  the  pur 
chaser,  who  pays  Peter  one  dollar  and 
twenty  cents.  He  now  returns  to  his  boat, 
takes  out  his  oars,  dips  up  a  bucket  of 
water,  washes  out  the  boat,  and  throwing  a 
bucket  of  water  into  it,  rolls  it  over  on  to 
its  side  and  lets  the  water  run  out.  Then 
carrying  up  his  killick  high  on  to  the 
beach,  he  gathers  up  his  oars,  and  carries 
them  to  the  fish-house.  T.hese  houses  are 
generally  occupied  in  common  by  several 
dory  men,  each  of  whom  pays  rent  for  the 
corner  in  which  he  keeps  his  own  gear. 

Now  it  is  sundown,  and  his  day's  work  is 
done.  He  dips  a  bucket  of  fresh  water 
from  the  spring,  just  back  of  the  fish-house, 
and  washing  the  gurry  from  his  hands  and 
face,  starts  for  his  home,  and  carries  to  his 
mother  the  dollar  and  twenty  cents  which 
he  has  earned.  She  receives  him  with  a 
smile  and  a  kind  word,  and  sets  before  him 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  25 

a  mug  of  hot  coffee  and  a  plate  of  bread, 
baked  before  the  fire,  and  some  bits  of 
dried  fish.  If  Peter  has  had  good  luck  for 
several  days,  they  get  a  pound  of  butter 
and  a  piece  of  cheese,  in  addition  to  the 
bread  and  fish. 

The  history  of  this  day,  was  the  history 
of  many  of  his  days  during  the  winter  and 
spring  after  Peter  Gott  arrived  at  the  age 
of  fifteen.  During  at  least  half  the  days, 
the  weather  was  so  cold  and  stormy  that 
he  could  not  go  out  at  all;  and  many 
times,  after  pulling  out  two  or  three  miles 
on  a  dark  and  cold  morning,  the  wind  would 
come  up  with  the  sun,  and  the  sea  would 
become  so  rough  that  he  could  not  fish, 
and  he  would  have  to  pull  back,  perhaps 
against  the  wind,  and  thus  would  return 
having  only  his  labor  for  his  pains.  Per 
haps  about  one  day  in  three,  he  was  able 
to  fish.  When  there  were  no  hawkers  on 
the  ground  to  take  off  his  fish,  he  sold 
them  to  Mr.  Dennis,  who  kept  the  store  at 
the  cove.  He  allowed  seventy-five  cents  a 
hundred  for  them,  and  paid  out  of  the  store. 


26  PETER   GOTT, 


CHAPTER   II. 

MR.  DENNIS.  —  SANDY  BAY.  —  AN  INCIDENT  OF  THE  LAST 
WAR  WITH  GREAT  BRITAIN.  —  FISHERMEN  AND  THEIR 
OWNERS.  —  FIRST  ATTEMPT  TO  SETTLE  CAPE  ANN. 

MR.  DENNIS  was  a  quiet,,  easy  man.  He 
purchased  second  and  third  rate  goods,  and 
sold  them  at  a  dear  rate.  But  then  he 
took  his  pay  in  fish,  and  this  he  had  to  salt 
and  make,  and  carry  to  market,  and  then, 
perhaps,  wait  four  or  six  months  for  his 
money;  and  he  was  obliged  to  charge  a 
large  profit.  But  he  took  in  his  fish  at 
such  a  lay,  that  he  made  a  good  profit  on 
this,  and  another  large  profit  on  the  goods 
which  he  sold.  He  had  grown  rich  in  this 
business,  and  owned  about  half  of  the  small 
houses  which  nestled  among  the  rocks  and 
ledges  on  the  eastern  declivity  of  Pigeon 
Hill,  besides  a  good  two-story  house,  with 
green  blinds,  which  stood  a  little  to  the 
northward  of  the  cove,  surrounded  by  a 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  27 

pretty  enclosure,  and  a  score  or  two  of  ap 
ple  and  pear  trees.  This  house  stood  on 
an  elevated  site,  and  commanded  a  fine 
view  of  the  ocean  to  the  east  and  south. 
The  whole  bay  was  under  the  eye  of  Mr. 
Dennis,  together  with  the  little  village  of 
Sandy  Bay,  which  lay  along  its  southern 
shore.  This  village  at  that  time  had  but 
one  church,  and  that  stood  within  gunshot 
of  deep  water. 

During  the  last  war  with  England,  a 
British  cruiser  was  lying  in  the  bay ;  and 
one  morning,  about  daylight,  sent  a  barge 
ashore,  armed  with  a  swivel,  to  reconnoitre 
the  village.  Some  fishermen,  who  had  just 
turned  out  for  their  daily  task,  discovered 
the  barge  before  it  reached  the  shore,  and 
rang  the  bell  to  alarm  the  inhabitants. 
The  midshipman  in  command  of  the  barge, 
said  he  would  silence  that  tell-tale,  and  or 
dered  the  gunner  to  fire  at  the  bell.  He 
charged  his  gun  heavily  and  lodged  a  ball 
in  one  of  the  posts  that  support  the  bal 
cony.  There  it  remains  to  the  present 
time,  and  is  shown  to  visitors  with  no  small 


28  PETER    QOTT, 

degree  of  pride,  as  proof  of  the  part  which 
the  people  of  that  village  took  in  that  war, 
and  the  dangers  to  which  they  were  ex 
posed.  The  sequel  of  the  story  is  never 
omitted,  which  was  as  follows :  When  the 
gun  was  discharged,  its  recoil  caused  the 
barge  to  spring  a  leak.  The  water  fast 
gaining  upon  them,  in  spite  of  their  exer 
tions  to  keep  the  barge  free,  the  middy, 
with  his  crew  of  eight  men,  called  out  lust 
ily  for  help.  Several  fishermen,  who  had 
now  collected  on  the  shore,  seeing  their 
condition,  put  off  in  their  dories  and  brought 
them  ashore,  and  kept  them  as  prisoners. 
Now  it  so  happened,  that  James  Eowe 
and  David  Pool,  two  fishermen,  being  out 
in  a  wherry  two  days  before,  had  been 
picked  up  by  the  cruiser,  whose  officers 
took  a  fancy  to  a  meal  of  fresh  cod,  with 
which  the  wherry  was  loaded.  These  men 
were  still  detained  on  board  the  cruiser. 
The  British  sailors  immediately  proposed 
an  exchange  of  prisoners.  But  no  one  be 
ing  authorized  to  negotiate  an  exchange, 
the  affair  was  managed  with  true  Yankee 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  29 

shrewdness.  The  British  officer  and  crew 
solemnly  promised,  that  if  they  were  fur 
nished  with  a  boat  to  return  to  the  frigate, 
they  would  send  it  back  in  charge  of  James 
and  David.  Trusting  to  their  honor,  their 
captors,  thinking  their  two  townsmen  worth 
more  than  the  nine  British  seamen,  showed 
them  a  boat  to  which  they  might  help 
themselves  ;  and  one  day,  when  their  guard 
was  at  dinner,  they  escaped  from  the  room 
in  which  they  were  confined,  seized  the 
boat,  and  put  off  to  the  cruiser.  They 
reached  her  in  safety,  and  honorably  fulfil 
led  their  promise,  sending  back  Jim  and 
Dave,  with  the  borrowed  boat. 

In  addition  to  the  real  estate  which  Mr. 
Dennis  had  accumulated  on  shore,  he  own 
ed  a  large  share  of  five  or  six  schooners, 
whose  outfits  he  furnished,  and  whose 
proceeds  he  received  and  marketed.  The 
crews  for  these  vessels,  consisting  of  eight 
or  ten  hands  to  each,  were  usually  shipped 
in  the  winter.  From  the  time  they  were 
shipped,  Mr.  Dennis  supplied  them  and 

their  families  with   groceries,    shoes,    and 
3* 


30 


PETER    GOTT, 


most  of  their  clothing.  After  the  vessels 
put  to  sea,  he  continued  to  supply  the  fam 
ilies  during  the  spring  and  summer.  If  the 
vessel  was  doing  well,  he  continued  to  sup 
ply  them  till  she  was  hauled  up,  late  in  the 
fall ;  but  if  she  did  not  make  good  fares,  he 
refused  to  supply  them  at  an  early  day  in 
the  fall.  It  very  often  happened  that  strong 
and  active  men,  after  having  labored  hard 
through  the  season,  had  not  a  dollar  com 
ing  to  them  when  the  voyage  was  settled, 
with  which  to  supply  the  wants  of  their 
families  through  the  winter.  This  was 
owing,  in  part,  to  the  want  of  economy  in 
the  families,  and  in  part  to  the  high  prices 
which  they  had  to  pay  for  every  thing 
which  he  furnished  them.  Mr.  Dennis  al 
ways  considered  it  an  object  to  bring  about 
this  result.  Even  if  they  owed  him  a  few 
dollars  at  the  settlement,  it  was  all  the  bet 
ter,  for  then  he  was  sure  of  their  services 
the  next  year.  Thus  they  were  bound  to 
him  by  a  bond  which  they  found  it  very 
difficult  to  break.  He  had  all  their  earn 
ings  in  his  hands,  and  paid  for  them  in 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  31 

goods  at  his  own  price,  and  how  could  he 
fail  to  grow  rich,  or  they  to  remain  poor  ? 
He  had  several  men  who  had  been  in  his 
employment  from  twenty  to  thirty  years, 
and  had  rarely,  if  ever,  been  out  of  his  debt. 
If  a  man,  with  a  family,  once  got  into  his 
debt,  his  only  hope  was,  that  when  his  boys 
got  old  enough  to  have  their  labor  of  some 
value,  their  wages,  added  to  his  own,  might 
enable  him  to  pay  off  his  debt  to  Mr.  Den 
nis,  and  begin  to  lay  by  a  little  capital  for 
himself.  The  earnings  of  the  sons  of  fish 
ermen  are  always  claimed  by  the  parents. 
Hence  a  father,  who  has  three  or  four  boys, 
if  he  can  maintain  his  family  by  his  own 
earnings,  and  lay  up  the  wages  of  his  sons 
from  the  time  they  are  sixteen  till  they  are 
twenty-one,  amasses  enough  to  buy  for  him 
self  a  snug  house  and  a  part  of  a  schooner, 
and  then  he  thinks  his  old  age  well  provided 
for.  Thus  a  family  of  sons  becomes  a  for 
tune  to  those  who  are  fortunate  enough  to 
have  them.  Early  marriages  are  almost 
universal  among  this  class  of  men,  and  thus 
it  often  happens,  that  before  a  man  is  forty, 


32  PETER   GOTT, 

he  has  several  sturdy  boys,  by  whose  assist 
ance  he  is  laying  up  a  competence  for  his 
wife  and  family,  during  the  remainder  of 
their  lives. 

Peter  Gott's  parents  were  of  the  number 
of  those  who  had  married  early  in  life.  His 
father,  whose  name  he  bore,  was  but  twenty- 
two,  and  his  mother  but  seventeen.  His 
father  was  a  lineal  descendant  of  James 
Gott,  who  was  one  of  the  first  company 
that  established  a  fishing  station  at  Cape 
Ann.  This  first  attempt  to  make  a  settle 
ment  was  abandoned,  and  the  men  engaged 
in  it  returned  to  Charlestown.  They  were 
driven  away,  not  so  much  by  the  hardships 
incident  to  a  new  settlement  and  the  re 
moteness  and  desolate  character  of  the 
place,  as  by  the  unearthly'  and  strange 
noises  which  were  heard  in  various  direc 
tions,  especially  at  night.  At  first  they 
supposed  these  noises  were  the  roaring  of 
lions.  But  no  lions  having  been  seen  in 
the  day  time,  they  came  to  the  sage  con 
clusion  that  it  must  be  the  howling  of  de 
vils,  who,  they  supposed,  were  disturbed  by 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  33 

their  taking  possession  of  this  spot,  which 
the  devils  claimed  as  peculiarly  their  own 
property,  and  were  taking  this  method  to 
warn  them  off.  The  cause  of  these  sounds 
is  now  well  understood.  The  whole  of 
the  Cape  is  little  else  than  a  bed  of 
granite,  thinly  covered  with  gravel  and  soil. 
Through  this  granite,  veins  of  green  stone 
have  been  forced  up,  at  intervals,  by  some 
violent  convulsion  of  nature.  These  veins 
are  from  one  to  six  feet  in  width  at  the 
surface,  and  in  some  instances  may  be 
traced  nearly  or  quite  across  the  Cape,  and 
sometimes  far  out  into  the  adjacent  bay. 
Where  these  veins  of  green  stone  are  ex 
posed  to  the  action  of  the  sea,  they  have 
been  worn  away  by  it,  leaving  chasms  ex 
tending  from  one  to  two  hundred  feet  into 
the  shore.  Of  these,  the  Gully,  at  Nor 
wood's  Head,  and  Raves'  Crack  near  Kettle 
Cove,  may  be  taken  as  samples.  It  has 
often  happened  that  a  mass  of  granite,  or 
some  neighboring  boulder,  has  been  driven 
by  some  violent  storm  into  one  of  these 
chasms,  and  the  chasm  being  too  narrow  to 


34  PETER   GOTT, 

admit  of  its  reaching  the  bottom,  it  has  re 
mained,  its  sides  resting  against  the  per 
pendicular  walls  of  granite  which  constitute 
the  sides  of  the  chasm.  Between  the  lower 
face  of  this  rock  and  the  bottom  of  the 
gully,  there  would  sometimes  be  left  a 
small  opening.  Through  this  opening  the 
air  is  driven  with  great  force,  when  a  lofty 
wave  rolls  in  upon  the  shore,  filling  sud 
denly  a  large  portion  of  the  chasm,  giving 
rise  to  sounds  that  may  be  compared  to  a 
dozen  steam  whistles  of  various  sizes  and 
keys,  from  a  sharp  treble  to  a  heavy  pro 
longed  bass,  all  sounding  together.  When 
these  screeches  are  heard  in  the  darkness 
of  midnight,  mingling  with  the  howling  of 
the  winds  and  the  dashing  of  the  waves 
upon  the  rocks,  and  the  echoes  from  the 
woods,  they  produce  an  effect  upon  the 
nerves  of  persons  unacquainted  with  their 
cause,  any  thing  but  agreeable ;  and  a  few 
solitary,  and  perhaps  home-sick  persons, 
strangers  in  a  strange  land,  may  well  be 
excused  for  considering  them  supernatural. 
After  a  few  years,  another  attempt  to 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.  35 

effect  a  settlement  was  more  successful. 
James  Gott  was  among  the  number  who 
settled  on  the  north  side  of  the  Cape.  They 
established  their  village,  a  little  distance 
from  the  sea-shore,  upon  the  western  de 
clivity  of  a  hill,  which  overlooked  Ipswich 
Bay.  Fifteen  or  twenty  log  houses  were 
erected.  The  cellars,  over  which  these 
houses  were  built,  may  still  be  seen,  though 
not  one  of  the  houses  remains,  nor  is  there 
a  single  house  in  the  immediate  vicinity. 
The  spot  is  now  known  all  over  the  Cape 
by  the  name  of  Dog  Town. 


36  PETER    GOTT, 


CHAPTER  III. 

PETER'S  PARENTS.  —  HIS  FATHER  GOES  TO  THE  BANKS. 

—  BANK  FISHING. 

PETER  GOTT'S  mother  was   Patty  Tarr, 
whose  ancestors  were   also  among  the  set 
tlers  of  Dog  Town.     Peter  was  their  oldest 
son,  and  was  born  before  his  mother  was 
eighteen  years  of  age.     In  the  course  of 
the  next  six  years,  twro  boys  and  two  girls 
were  added  to  the  family.     To  supply  their 
wants,  from  day  to  day,  demanded  of  the 
young  father  the  full  exercise  of  all   his 
powers,  and  the  practice  of  the  most  rigid 
economy.     Peter  loved  his  wife  and  chil 
dren,   and   her   cheerful  smile,   and   their 
noisy  mirth  at  his  return  from  the  toils  of 
the  day,  were  an  ample  reward.     But  at 
the  close  of  the  seventh  winter  of  his  mar 
ried  life,  he  found  himself  deeply  in  debt  to 
Mr.  Dennis,  who  had  been  induced  to  trust 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  37 

him  to  a  considerable  amount,  by  his  well 
known  honesty  and  industry,  although  he 
did  not  belong  to  either  of  his  vessels.    His 
fifth  child  had  just  been  born,  and  his  wife 
had  been  sick  some  weeks,  in  consequence 
of  too  early  exposure.     He  had  been  com 
pelled  to  hire  a  nurse  and  to  call  on  the 
doctor ;  and  his  anxiety  about  his  wife,  and 
the  care  of  his  children,  had  kept  him  at 
home  during  several  days  of  good  weather. 
When  the  spring  opened,  his  wife  had  re 
gained  her  health,  but  was  somewhat  low 
spirited  and   discouraged   in   view   of  the 
prospect  before  them.     Peter  felt  the  sense 
of  oppression   that   results  from  the    con 
sciousness  of  being  in  debt,  and  not  seeing 
very  clearly  how  the  obligation  was  to  be 
discharged.     Under  the   influence  of  this 
feeling,  he  listened  the  more  readily  to  a 
suggestion  from  skipper  Tarr,  who   com 
manded  the  Jane,  that  he  should  ship  on 
board  his  schooner,  which  was  bound  to  the 
Grand  Bank,  and  was  to  sail  on  the  sixth 
of  April.     He  talked  the  matter  over  with 
Patty ;  told  her  his  circumstances,  and  re- 


38  PETER   GOTT, 

ferred  her  to  several  young  men  of  their 
acquaintance,  who  had  been  engaged  in 
Bank  fishing,  and  had  had  better  success 
than  he  had  in  shore  fishing.  Patty  shed 
many  tears  at  the  idea  of  Peter's  being  ab 
sent  ten  or  twelve  weeks  at  a  time,  which 
is  the  usual  length  of  trips  to  the  Banks. 
But  at  length,  confiding  in  his  judgment, 
and  influenced  by  his  assuring  her  that  it 
was  much  easier  than  shore  fishing,  she 
consented,  and  the  next  day  Peter  Gott's 
name  was  added  to  the  list  of  the  Jane's 
crew  ;  and  now  Patty  was  fully  employed 
in  getting  her  husband  ready  for  the  trip. 
Two  new  red  flannel  shirts  must  be  made ; 
two  pairs  of  socks  must  be  knit,  and  three 
or  four  pairs  of  woollen  nippers.  Every 
moment  that  could  be  spared  from  the  care 
of  her  babes,  she  plied  her  needle  with  the 
utmost  diligence,  and  when  they  were 
sleeping  quietly,  three  of  them  nestled  in 
the  trundle-bed  and  one  in  the  cradle,  and 
the  infant  in  her  lap,  her  knitting-needles 
moved,  almost  without  cessation,  far  into 
the  night.  At  length  they  were  all  ready, 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  39 

and  Peter,  with  a  new  Kersey  jacket  and 
his  boots  well  stuffed,  was  ready  for  the 
voyage.  On  the  morning  of  the  sixth,  he 
took  leave  of  his  weeping  wife,  and  kissed 
his  little  ones,  and  went  on  board.  The 
tide  was  full ;  the  schooner,  freshly  painted 
and  in  perfect  order,  was  afloat.  A  gentle 
breeze  from  the  north-west  was  springing 
up.  Her  jib  and  mainsail  were  run  up; 
the  warp  that  held  her  to  the  wharf  was 
cast  off,  and  hauled  on  board ;  she  gradu 
ally  fell  off  from  the  wharf,  and  soon,  tak 
ing  the  breeze,  with  the  skipper  at  the 
helm,  she  made  her  way  gracefully  out  of 
the  Cove. 

Little  Peter  had  come  down  with  his 
father  to  see  him  off.  He  stood  among  the 
few  spectators  on  the  wharf,  and  joined 
heartily  in  the  cheers  which  they  gave,  as 
the  vessel  left  the  harbor.  When  Peter 
left  his  family,  he  confidently  expected  to 
see  them  again  by  the  Fourth  of  July  at 
the  farthest. 

The  Cape  Ann  fishermen  have,  from  the 
earliest  settlement  of  the  Cape,  been  accus- 


40  PETER   GOTT, 

tomed,  for  the  most  part,  to  return  to  the 
Cape  with  their  fares,  and  make  the  fish  at 
their  own  homes.  The  owners  of  the  ves 
sels  have  a  flake-yard  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  landing  places,  to  which  the  fish  are 
carried  on  being  landed.  The  flakes  consist 
of  three  long  poles  laid  upon  crotched  posts 
driven  into  the  ground.  These  poles  are 
placed  parallel  to  each  other,  about  two  feet 
apart,  and  covered  with  brush ;  upon  them 
the  fish  are  spread.  At  night  they  are 
thrown  into  small  heaps,  called  hakes,  with 
the  skin  upwards.  They  are  spread  in  the 
morning,  when  the  weather  is  fair,  and 
turned  once  or  twice  a  day. 

The  making  of  fish  has,  in  latter  years, 
become  a  business  by  itself.  Individuals 
own  large  flake-yards,  and  take  the  fish 
from  the  vessels  and  make  them,  receiving 
every  fifteenth  quintal  for  their  services. 
The  fishermen  from  Cape  Cod,  Marblehead, 
and  many  other  places,  were  formerly  in 
the  habit,  when  they  had  loaded  their  ves 
sels,  of  running  for  the  nearest  points  of 
Nova  Scotia  or  Newfoundland,  and  landing 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  41 

their  fish  and  piling  them  in  large  heaps, 
where  they  were  left  two  or  three  days  to 
drain.  In  the  meantime,  they  erected  their 
flakes  and  a  hut  which  they  used  as  a 
dwelling  while  they  were  drying  their  fish, 
and  as  a  store-house  when  the  process  was 
completed.  After  they  were  sufficiently 
drained,  they  were  carried  to  the  flakes  on 
hand  barrows,  and  spread  and  turned  and 
haked  up  at  night  until  they  were  suffi 
ciently  dried.  This  process,  which  is  called 
"  making,"  occupies  from  four  to  ten  days, 
according  to  the  state  of  the  weather.  The 
utmost  care  is  needed,  when  the  sky  is 
clear  and  the  weather  hot,  to  prevent  their 
burning,  as  it  is  called.  If  they  become 
too  much  heated,  they  are  rendered  tender 
and  brittle,  like  fish  that  is  cooked,  which, 
in  fact,  is  the  case  with  burnt  fish.  To 
prevent  this,  the  fishermen  shaded  them 
with  green  boughs,  or  covered  them  with 
sails  in  the  middle  of  the  day.  In  modern 
days  yankee  ingenuity  has  so  arranged  the 
flakes,  that  they  can  be  turned  from  the 
sun  at  such  an  angle  as  to  prevent  his  direct 

4* 


42  PETER    GOTT, 

rays  from  falling  upon  them.  When  the  fish 
were  sufficiently  made,  they  were  stacked 
up  in  the  hut  and  left  upon  shore. 

The  fishermen  now  scrubbed  the  vessel's 
bottom,  payed  her  seams  with  tar,  filled  up 
their  water  casks,  and  put  off  again  for  the 
Grand  Banks.  By  the  middle  of  Septem 
ber  they  usually  completed  the  second  fare, 
and  returning  to  the  shore,  spread  their 
fish  upon  the  flakes.  The  weather  has 
now  become  cold  on  that  northern  and  in 
hospitable  coast.  The  nights  are  frosty, 
and  occasional  snow  squalls  vary  the  mo 
notony  of  the  scene.  The  process  of  mak 
ing  occupies  at  least  a  week  longer  than  in 
July  ;  but  the  fish  are  better  made, — they 
do  not  require  to  be  salted -so  high  to  pre 
serve  them.  What  are  called  "dun  fish" 
are  made  in  the  autumn.  The  fall  fares 
command  a  better  price  than  the  spring 
fares.  While  the  fish  are  making,  they 
clean  out  the  hold  of  their  vessel,  and,  se 
lecting  a  clear  day,  pack  away  the  first, 
or  spring  fare,  in  the  bottom.  When  the 
second  fare  is  ready,  they  stow  that  upon 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  43 

the  other  ;  then  shutting  down  the  hatches, 
they  hoist  their  sails  and  bear  away  for 
their  distant  homes,  having  been  absent 
from  six  to  eight  months.  If  they  have 
been  lucky,  they  will  have  made  from  ten 
to  twelve  hundred  quintals  of  fish,  one  half 
of  which  goes  to  the  vessel,  and  the  other 
half  to  the  skipper  and  crew. 

Since  the  last  war  with  England,  the  fish 
ermen  from  the  States  have  not  been 
allowed  to  make  their  fish  upon  the  shores 
of  the  British  Provinces,  and  have  returned 
home  at  the  close  of  each  fare. 

When  Peter  sailed,  on  the  sixth  of  April, 
he  expected  to  return  as  soon  as  they  had 
wet  their  salt.  When  vessels  are  on  the 
Banks,  it  is  usual  for  them,  at  the  close  of 
each  day,  to  dress  off  their  fish.  The  heads 
are  cut  off,  the  fish  split  open,  the  livers 
saved  in  butts  provided  for  the  purpose, 
and  the  entrails  thrown  into  the  sea.  The 
fish  are  then  salted  in  layers  in  the  hold  of 
the  vessel,  or  in  butts.  When  they  have 
taken  fish  enough  to  use  up  all  the  salt  on 
board,  they  say  they  have  wet  all  their 


44  PETER    GOTT, 

salt.  It  was  the  custom,  at  the  period  of 
which  we  are  speaking,  to  save  the  roe  or 
spawn  of  the  fish,  and  salt  it  in  barrels  for 
the  European  market.  This  was  quite  an 
important  article  of  trade.  This  is  not  now 
preserved  on  board  the  American  vessels. 
The  French  vessels  still  continue  to  pre 
serve  it. 

The  Jane  sailed  out  of  the  bay  with  a 
brisk  wind,  and  passing  between  Sal 
vage's  and  Stretchmouth  Island,  she  laid 
her  course  for  the  Grand  Banks,  and  was 
soon  out  of  sight  of  the  rocky  headlands  of 
the  Cape.  They  went  on  all  that  day  and 
the  following  night  with  a  favorable  wind. 
On  the  second  day  at  9  o'clock  they  spoke 
the  good  brig  David  Pearce,  from  Bilboa, 
where  she  had  been  through  the  previous 
Lent,  supplying  the  inhabitants  with  fish 
and  salted  roe,  called  by  the  fishermen, 
"Pec"  which  at  that  period  was  shipped  in 
considerable  quantities  to  that  port.  She 
had  made  a  good  voyage.  The  year  was 
now  completed  since  the  Jane,  and  other 
bankers,  had  sailed  on  the  previous  April 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  45 

for  the  Banks  ;  and  the  David  Pearce  was 
bringing  back,  in  salt,  olive  oil  and  wine, 
the  returns  of  the  fish  which  they  had 
taken.  Thus  commerce  distributes  the 
products  of  the  land  and  the  sea  over  the 
face  of  the  earth,  furnishing  employment  to 
thousands,  and  enriching,  or  at  least  sus 
taining,  those  engaged  in  it.  The  vessels 
passed  so  near  each  other,  that  the  men 
readily  recognized  each  other  upon  deck, 
and  saluted  one  another  with  a  hearty 
cheer.  The  crew  of  the  David  consisted 
mostly  of  fishermen,  who,  after  the  close  of 
the  fishing,  the  previous  fall,  had  shipped 
for  a  voyage  to  Bilboa. 

It  is  a  common  thing  for  fishermen,  es 
pecially  those  who  are  young,  and  have  no 
families,  to  ship  in  November  and  December 
for  a  winter  voyage  of  three  or  four  or  five 
months.  One  is  induced  to  do  so  by  a  de 
sire  to  see  the  world  ;  another,  that  he  may 
add  something  to  the  gains  of  the  year,  and 
be  enabled  to  marry  the  girl  he  loves ; 
another,  the  head  of  a  family,  is  driven  by 
necessity  to  ship  as  a  sailor,  that  he  may 


46  PETEE   GOTT, 

earn  bread  for  his  growing  flock  at  home. 
When  he  is  far  away  upon  mid  ocean,  in 
the  darkness  of  midnight,  with  the  storm 
howling  around  him,  as  he  turns  in  at  the 
close  of  his  watch,  to  his  cold  and  damp 
berth,  he  thinks  of  the  loved  ones  at  home, 
and  sends  up  his  brief  prayer  to  Heaven  for 
a  blessing  upon  them.  He  feels  that  earnest 
prayers  are  going  up  for  his  safety ;  and 
who  shall  say  that  any  more  acceptable 
prayers  meet  and  mingle  in  the  presence 
of  our  Father  above,  than  the  prayers  of 
the  rough  and  hardy  sailor,  and  the  wife 
and  children  whom  he  has  left  behind. 
When  we  leave  our  warm  parlors  and  soft 
couches  and  retire  to  our  downy  beds,  as 
we  listen  to  the  peltings  of  the  pitiless 
storm  without,  to  the  sleet  or  the  drifting 
snow  as  it  drives  against  our  closed  blinds, 
or  to  the  wind  as  it  whistles  through  the 
trees  around  our  dwellings,  we  sometimes 
think  of  the  sailor,  and  perhaps  say,  "  God 
bless  him!'*  But  the  sailor's  wife,  as  she 
lies  upon  her  hard  bed,  with  her  babe  nest 
ling  in  her  bosom,  as  she  listens  to  the 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  47 

howling  tempest,  and  thinks  of  him  tossing 
upon  the  heaving  billows  and  buffeting  the 
briny  waves,  or  perhaps  lashed  to  the 
helm  in  the  pitchy  darkness,  with  the  salt 
spray  and  the  sharp  sleet  driving  full  into 
his  face,  with  no  ray  of  light  but  the  little 
twinkle  in  the  binnacle  that  casts  an  indis 
tinct  gleam  upon  the  compass.  0  how 
sincere,  how  heartfelt,  how  earnest  are  her 
prayers!  When  she  falls  into  a  dreamy 
sleep,  she  sees  him  perhaps  struggling  in 
the  cold,  dark  waters,  or  borne  upon  a 
green  curling  billow,  about  to  be  dashed 
upon  some  ragged,  projecting  rock,  and 
awakes  with  a  scream  of  agony ;  and  again 
she  prays,  0  how  earnestly,  to  Him  who 
alone  can  save  him.  Thus  it  is,  "  Out  of 
the  abundance  of  the  heart,  the  mouth 
speaketh."  And  is  it  not  the  heart-speech 
that  is  accepted  ? 

Fishermen  make  excellent  seamen.  They 
are  faithful,  brave  and  intelligent,  and  soon 
learn  the  terms  used  on  board  square-rigged 
vessels,  and  the  manoeuvres  employed  in 
working  them.  Many  of  the  most  enter- 


48  PETER    GOTT, 

prising  masters  and  seamen  in  our  mer 
chant  service,  had  their  first  training  in 
fishing  vessels.  A  voyage  to  Europe,  to 
the  West  Indies,  or  to  the  Coast  of  South 
America,  is,  on  the  whole,  the  best  employ 
ment  for  the  fisherman  in  the  winter.  The 
great  evil  in  the  life  of  the  fisherman  is, 
that  he  is  idle  through  the  winter,  and  eats 
up,  during  that  portion  of  the  year,  what 
he  had  earned  in  the  summer.  This  it  is 
that  keeps  most  of  them  poor  all  their  lives. 
Various  attempts  have  been  made  to  furnish 
them  with  some  mechanical  employment 
on  shore  during  the  cold  season,  as  shoe- 
making,  boat-building,  coopering,  &c. ;  but 
they  have  all  failed,  from  the  fact  that  sea 
men  have  a  sovereign  contempt  for  all  the 
occupations  of  landsmen.  They  will  not 
be  converted  into  land  lubbers.  Hence  a 
large  proportion  of  the  fishermen  spend 
their  winters  loafing  about  in  the  stores 
and  fish-houses,  smoking  their  pipes  and 
telling  stories ;  and  when  their  money  is 
gone,  running  in  debt  for  supplies  for  their 
families,  on  the  anticipation  of  the  next 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  49 

year's  earnings.  The  result  is  what  might 
be  naturally  expected.  They  are  always 
poor,  and  always  in  debt. 

After  speaking  the  David,  the  Jane  kept 
on  her  course,  and  the  following  night  en 
countered  a  north-east  wind,  which  blew  in 
spiteful  gusts.  The  clouds  were  broken 
and  black.  In  the  morning  the  storm  burst 
upon  them.  The  snow  fell  with  great  vio 
lence,  and  soon  loaded  the  deck.  They 
laid  her  to,  under  a  close  reefed  foresail,  and 
all  hands,  except  the  man  at  the  helm,  took 
refuge  in  the  cuddy.  Here  they  spent  the 
day  and  the  following  night,  each  taking 
his  turn  at  the  helm.  The  next  morning 
the  wind  worked  to  the  eastward,  and  the 
snow  was  followed  by  a  cold,  driving  rain. 
As  the  sun  was  setting  on  that  day,  a  glin 
was  seen  in  the  west.  The  wind  came 
round  into  the  north-west,  and  the  cold  be 
came  intense.  The  wet  snow  upon  deck 
was  converted  into  solid  ice.  Their  run 
ning  rigging  became  immovable.  The  bows 
and  bowsprit  were  heavily  loaded  with  ice, 
and  they  were  drifting  at  the  mercy  of  the 


50  PETER    GOTT, 

wind.  They  at  length  succeeded  in  put 
ting  her  before  the  wind,  and  run  for  the 
Gulf  Stream,  hoping  to  reach  warmer  water, 
and  thus  free  themselves  from  ice.  After 
running  and  beating  about  in  the  latitude 
of  the  Gulf  Stream,  they  set  their  head  to 
the  north  and  east,  and  on  the  twenty- 
fourth  of  April  found  themselves  sailing  in 
green  water,  which  indicates  soundings,  and 
trying  the  lead,  they  found  sixty  fathoms. 
They  were  now  fairly  on  the  Bank.  But 
they  were  enveloped  in  a  fog  so  dense  that 
they  could  scarcely  see  the  length  of  the 
deck.  Every  thing  in  the  vessel  was  satu 
rated  with  moisture.  Their  pea  jackets  and 
baize  shirts  were  doubled  in  weight  by  the 
moisture  which  they  had  imbibed.  The 
water  hung  in  drops  from  the  ceiling  of  the 
cuddy  •  even  the  bed  and  blankets  in  their 
berths,  when  they  turned  out  in  the  morn 
ing,  steamed  like  so  many  uncovered  wash 
boilers.  They  had  scarcely  been  dry  for 
the  last  fifteen  days,  and  their  skins  were 
completely  parboiled.  But  they  had  come 
to  catch  fish,  and  having  with  much  diffi 
culty  and  some  peril  reached  the  fishing 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  51 

ground,  they  were  not  to  be  frightened  at 
a  fog  bank,  and  immediately  set  about  pre 
paring  for  action.  They  cast  anchor  in  sixty 
fathoms.  Cleared  the  deck,  took  off  their 
hatch  covers,  uncaulked  the  hatches  and  un 
covered  the  hold.  They  fixed  their  oil 
butts  in  their  places,  and  hoisted  out  some 
water  barrels  and  a  barrel  of  salted  clams. 
They  got  out  their  reels,  hung  their  sink 
ers  and  ganged  their  hooks.  They  next 
got  up  their  buckets  and  sharpened  their 
splitting  knives  and  overhauled  their  chests, 
to  find  their  woollen  mittens  and  nippers. 
These  arrangements  occupied  the  remain 
der  of  the  day. 

Peter,  and  two  or  three  others,  who  had 
now  come  upon  the  Bank  for  the  first  time, 
were  anxious  to  try  their  luck.  So  they 
put  a  clam  upon  their  hooks,  and  dropped 
their  sinkers  into  the  green  water.  After 
waiting  patiently,  as  only  a  fisherman 
knows  how,  they  hauled  up  four  or  five 
noble  cod,  which  were  soon  sputtering  in 
the  cook's  fry-pan,  and  furnished  them  with 
a  hearty  supper,  to  which  they  set  to  with 
right  good  will. 


52  PETER    GOTT, 


CHAPTER    IV. 

FISHERMAN'S  GRUB.  —  FOGS.  —  THE   GRAND  BANKS.  — 
TROLL  FISHING. 

FISHERMEN,  in  those  days,  ate  much  more 
fish  on  their  trips  than  they  do  at  the  pre 
sent  time.  They  were  fitted  out  with  a 
good  supply  of  salt  pork  and  molasses,  with 
a  plenty  of  India  meal,  a  little  flour  and 
hard  bread.  Their  bread  was  made  of  meal 
and  water,  with  a  little  salt  and  molasses 
added,  and  baked  upon  tin  sheets  or  pieces 
of  barrel-heads,  before  the  fire.  Once  or 
twice  a  week  they  had  tea  made,  by  put 
ting  tea  into  a  boiler,  and  adding  a  quantity 
of  molasses,  and  boiling  it  as  coffee  is  boiled. 
Coffee  was  seldom  used  at  sea  in  those  days, 
and  their  sugar  was  kept  to  sweeten  their 
grog,  which  was  duly  served  out  to  them 
twice  a  day.  On  Sunday,  it  was  common 
to  have  a  flour  short-cake,  which  was  pre- 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  53 

pared  in  the  following  way  :  The  head  was 
broken  out  of  a  flour  barrel;  the  flour 
scooped  out  of  the  centre  so  as  to  make  a 
basin-like  cavity,  sufficiently  large  for  the 
cook's  purpose  ;  he  then  poured  into  it  a 
pint  of  pork  fat,  which  he  had  fried  out  of 
slices  of  salt  pork,  a  quantity  of  molasses 
and  a  little  hot  water,  and  mixed  in  the 
flour  till  it  was  of  the  proper  consistence. 
It  was  then  taken  out  in  a  mass,  and  baked 
in  a  Dutch  oven  over  the  fire.  This  is  no 
contemptible  dish,  and  contains  nearly  as 
many  good  qualities  as  Lord  Peter's  leg  of 
mutton  ;  and  many  a  hearty  breakfast  of  a 
Sunday  morning  do  the  fishermen  make  of 
it,  with  their  pot  of  boiled  tea.  Those  who 
have  never  tried  a  dish  of  boiled  tea,  will 
be  surprised  to  find  how  good  a  substitute 
it  is  for  coffee,  especially  if  a  little  sweet 
milk  is  added  just  at  the  close  of  the  boil 
ing.  In  modern  times,  the  fishermen  are 
fitted  out  with  a  much  greater  variety  ancl 
abundance  of  food,  than  in  the  days  of 
which  we  are  speaking.  Salt  pork  and 
beef,  potatoes  and  cabbages,  flour  and  hard 

5* 


54  PETER    GOTT, 

bread  of  a  superior  quality  from  Johnson's 
bakery,,  and  coffee  three  times  a  day,  is 
their  common  fare.  Cape  Ann  fishermen 
are  famous  for  their  good  living.  I  have 
known  men  among  them  who  have  drank 
their  strong  coffee  three  times  a  day  for 
forty  years,  and,  as  if  on  purpose  to  prove 
the  fallacy  of  all  that  has  been  said  about 
the  injurious  effects  of  coffee,  they  have 
persisted  in  having  good  heolth  for  the 
whole  of  that  time.  But  fish,  fresh  or  corn 
ed,  was  the  principal  article  of  food  at  the 
time  when  Peter  made  his  first  trip  to  the 
Banks. 

A  few  years  after  the  time  referred  to, 
Capt.  Burnham  sailed  from  Essex  in  a  fifty 
ton  schooner,  on  a  fishing  trip  to  the  east 
ern  shore,  victualled  for  six  wreeks.  After 
spending  four  weeks  unsuccessfully  on  the 
coast  of  Maine,  and  having  now  but  two 
weeks'  provision  on  board,  he  sailed  for 
the  Banks,  determined  not  to  return  till  he 
had  filled  his  little  craft  with  fish.  On  ar 
riving  at  the  Bank,  they  found  an  abun 
dance  of  fish.  But  soon  their  provisions 


THE    CAPE    ANN    FISHERMAN.  55 

were  all  gone  ;  not  a  crumb  of  bread,  not  a 
slice  of  pork,  not  a  drop  of  molasses  had 
they  left.  Halibut  fins  and  napes,  fried  in 
their  own  fat,  and  boiled  codfish,  consti 
tuted  their  only  food  for  six  weeks.  Not 
even  a  drop  of  tea  or. a  drink  of  grog  had 
they  left.  Fish,  fish,  fish  !  was  their  break 
fast,  and  dinner,  and  supper.  But  they  wet 
all  their  salt,  and  returned  to  the  Cape  at 
the  end  of  twelve  weeks  from  the  time  they 
sailed,  all  fat  and  hearty.  They  had  been 
given  up  as  lost  by  their  friends  some  weeks 
before  they  arrived.  An  old  man,  who  was 
one  of  the  crew,  on  relating  this  incident 
of  his  early  life,  remarked,  that  the  whole 
crew  were  as  fat  and  savage  as  bears. 

,The  next  morning,  when  the  sun  arose, 
he  was  dimly  visible  through  the  thick  veil 
that  had  so  long  concealed  his  face.  Tak 
ing  this  as  an  omen  of  good  luck,  they  com 
menced  their  work  in  good  earnest.  For 
some  days  they  were  not  very  successful, 
taking  only  three  or  four  quintals  per  day. 
On  the  third  day,  their  solitude  was  re 
lieved  by  a  Marblehead  schooner,  which 


56  PETER    GOTT, 

had  arrived  on  the  ground,  and  dropped 
her  anchor  about  a  mile  from  the  berth 
which  they  occupied.  They  now  felt  that 
they  had  some  neighbors,  and  could  enjoy 
the  pleasures  of  social  intercourse  with 
their  fellows.  If  there  is  any  situation  in 
the  wide  world  where  men  feel  solitary  and 
alone,  it  is  on  the  Banks  of  Newfoundland, 
with  no  object  in  sight  to  break  the  monot 
ony  of  the  scene.  Neither  sun,  moon  nor 
stars  are  seen  for  many  days.  They  are 
enveloped  in  a  dense  fog,  which  shuts  them 
up  from  all  the  world.  In  the  long,  damp, 
chilly  nights,  they  are  enclosed  as  with  a 
solid  wall  of  darkness.  When  a  lantern  is 
brought  on  deck,  it  literally  renders  the 
darkness  visible.  There  you  lie,  rocking 
to  and  fro,  and  rising  and  falling  with  the 
swelling  surges,  day  after  day  and  night 
after  night ;  your  deck  slimy  and  slippery, 
the  water  trickling  in  streams  down  the 
windward  face  of  your  mast,  and  a  large 
drop  hangs  ready  to  fall  from  the  loose  end 
of  every  gasket.  Below  deck  matters  are 
not  much  better ;  every  thing  is  wet  and 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  57 

sticky  in  the  cabin,  and  in  the  hold  all  i^ 
chilly  and  dank,  like  some  deep,  dark  cav 
ern  in  the  mountain  side.  When  fish  are 
plenty,  and  the  crew  take  from  twenty  to 
thirty  quintals  a  day,  the  feeling  of  success 
enables  one  to  bear  the  solitude.  But 
when  you  are  doing  nothing,  or  only  catch 
ing  now  and  then  a  dog-fish,  the  feeling  of 
dreariness  is  sometimes  very  oppressive. 
In  a  voyage  at  sea,  although  you  are  in 
mid  ocean  and  not  a  sail  in  sight,  the  very 
motion  of  the  vessel  has  something  inspir 
iting  and  animating  in  it.  She  moves 
through  the  water  as  a  thing  of  life.  And 
then  the  daily  routine  of  labor,  in  working 
the  ship  and  keeping  her  clean  and  snug, 
keeps  all  hands  employed.  If  a  storm 
overtakes  you,  or  a  gale  comes  down  upon 
you,  all  is  life  and  activity ;  all  your  energy 
and  skill  are  called  into  requisition.  You 
have  a  battle  to  fight  with  the  elements, 
and  your  safety  depends  upon  your  skill 
and  endurance.  Here  is  no  feeling  of 
tedium  or  ennui.  The  sailor,  the  world 
over,  prefers  the  storm  to  the  calm. 


58 


PETER    GOTT, 


A  fisherman  often  spends  weeks  on  the 
Banks  without  seeing  a  vessel,  although 
hundreds  are  on  the  ground.  This  is  ow 
ing  partly  to  the  fogs  which  abound  there, 
and  partly  to  the  immense  extent  of  that 
portion  of  the  Atlantic  known  as  the  Grand 
Bank.  The  Bank  is  a  range  of  submarine 
mountains  lying  between  the  eastern  shores 
of  North  America  and  Northern  Europe. 
This  range  runs  nearly  north  and  south, 
and  is  twelve  hundred  miles  in  length.  Its 
width  is  very  variable,  as  are  the  heights  of 
its  summits.  In  some  places  they  approach 
within  forty  fathoms  of  the  surface,  at  other 
points  they  are  one  hundred  and  twenty  or 
fifty  fathoms  below  it;  thus  resembling 
mountain  ranges  upheaved  upon  the  land. 
A  parallel  range,  lying  to  the  westward  of 
the  main  bank,  is  known  by  the  name  of 
the  Western  Bank,  and  is  preferred  by 
some  fishermen  to  the  Great  Bank.  The 
cod  frequent  all  this  immense  portion  of 
the  Atlscntic,  and  during  the  fishing  season, 
vessels  are  scattered  on  every  part  of 
it ;  and  it  often  happens  that  a  vessel  will 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  59 

be  at  work  for  weeks,  without  a  sail  in 
sight. 

The  Jane  remained  at  her  first  berth 
about  two  weeks ;  during  this  time  they 
took  less  than  a  hundred  quintals,  and  be 
coming  dissatisfied  with  their  success,  they 
hauled  up  their  anchor,  and  ran  about  fifty 
miles  to  the  north-east,  and  anchored  in 
seventy  fathoms.  Here  they  were  more 
successful,  striking  immediately  a  school  of 
large  fish.  They  now  made  up  for  lost 
time,  and  in  the  course  of  four  weeks  they 
had  four  hundred  quintals  on  board,  beside 
several  barrels  of  halibut  cut  into  slices  and 
salted,  and  two  large  sword-fish. 

But  now  the  school  was  exhausted,  or 
driven  from  the  ground  by  sharks  or  some 
other  monsters  of  the  deep,  that  visit  the 
Banks  to  prey  upon  the  cod.  It  often  hap 
pens  that  codfish  will  all  at  once  cease  to 
take  the  hook,  without  any  known  cause. 
The  same  thing  is  true  of  pollock  and 
mackerel,  and  indeed  all  fish  that  go  in 
schools.  They  appear  to  move  in  a  body, 
and  to  be  actuated  by  a  common  impulse. 


60 


Their  habits  and  the  laws  that  govern  them 
are  little  understood,  although  many  facts 
respecting  them  have  been  known  for  scores 
of  years. 

After  remaining  idle  some  days,  waiting 
for  the  fish  to  take  the  hook,  they  again 
shifted  their  berth  about  thirty  miles  to 
the  northward.  They  had  now  salt  enough 
for  a  hundred  quintals  more,  and  in  the 
course  of  a  week  they  had  nearly  wet  it  all. 
The  weather  had  now  become  warm  and 
pleasant,  and  the  rising  sun  generally  dissi 
pated  the  fog  that  enveloped  them  during 
the  night.  One  bright  morning,  about  nine 
o'clock,  as  the  fog  lifted  from  the  water  and 
floated  like  a  cloud  in  mid  air,  one  of  the 
men  discovered  a  string  of  buoys,  about 
half  a  mile  distant.  This  informed  them, 
that  a  French  vessel  had  been  fishing  in 
the  vicinity,  and  had  lost  one  of  her  lines. 

The  French  go  upon  the  Banks  with 
large  vessels,  commonly  high-decked  brigs, 
with  numerous  crews,  and  having  selected 
a  berth,  put  down  a  couple  of  anchors,  and 
make  arrangements  to  spend  four  or  six 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  61 

months.  They  are  generally  furnished  with 
four  large  boats,  with  a  crew  to  each.  They 
run  out  long  lines,  about  half  an  inch  in 
thickness,  made  of  flax,  hard  twisted  and 
very  strong.  These  are  from  sixty  to  a 
hundred  fathoms  long.  They  are  attached 
to  buoys,  and  laid  in  different  directions 
from  the  brig.  To  these  lines  they  attach 
short  fish-lines,  at  the  distance  of  about  a 
fathom  from  each  other,  with  a  baited  hook 
at  the  end  of  each.  These  long  lines  are 
called  trolls,  and  this  mode  of  fishing  is 
called  trolling.  The  boats  overhaul  these 
trolls  daily,  and  when  fish  are  plenty,  twice 
a  day,  and  take  off  the  fish  that  they  find 
upon  the  hooks,  and  re-bait  the  hooks. 
The  fish  are  then  hoisted  upon  the  deck  of 
the  brig,  and  dressed  and  salted.  When 
the  wind  is  high,  or  the  sea  is  rough,  they 
are  sometimes  unable  to  visit  their  trolls 
for  several  days  in  succession,  and  the  fish 
that  are  caught  are  either  eaten  by  other 
fish,  or  become  spoiled  and  unfit  for  use. 
The  Americans  never  adopt  this  method, 
although  in  good  weather  it  is  easier  than 


62  PETER    GOTT, 

that  which  they  pursue.  The  hauling  of 
fish  over  the  rail  of  a  vessel,  with  lines 
sixty  or  seventy  feet  long,  is  by  no  means 
an  easy  task.  When  a  halibut  or  large 
cod  is  attached  to  the  line,  it  requires  the 
man  to  put  forth  his  whole  strength,  and 
sometimes  the  aid  of  another  man,  with  a 
gaff,  which  is  a  pole  with  an  iron  hook  at 
the  end,  is  needed,  to  bring  it  on  board. 
The  Yankees  consider  this  method  the  most 
expeditious,  and  they  are  not  so  sparing  of 
muscular  efforts  as  the  French.  Besides, 
the  high-decked  vessels  of  the  French  ren 
ders  fishing  with  long  lines  much  less  prac 
ticable  than  it  is  on  board  the  low-decked 
schooners  of  the  Americans. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  63 


CHAPTER    V. 

PETER'S  FATHER  LOST  ON  THE  BANKS.  —  THE  VESSEL 
RETURNS  TO  PIGEON  COVE.  —  THE  NEWS  OF  A  MAN 
LOST,  REACHES  THERE  BEFORE  HER. 

THE  crew  of  the  Jane  on  discovering  the 
troll,  made  all  haste  to  get  out  their  boat, 
to  go  and  pick  it  up.  Peter,  who  had  never 
before  seen  a  troll  line,  was  eager  to  be 
one  of  the  party,  and  no  sooner  was  the 
boat  alongside  than  he  jumped  into  her, 
and,  with  two  other  hands,  briskly  pushed 
off  in  the  direction  of  the  buoys.  They 
danced  merrily  over  the  green  waves.  They 
soon  reached  the  most  distant  buoy,  and 
heading  the  boat  in  the  direction  of  the 
Jane,  began  taking  in  the  troll,  clearing 
the  hooks  of  the  dead  fish  as  they  pro 
ceeded.  It  proved  to  be  a  long  line.  They 
had  hauled  in  about  half  of  it,  when  find 
ing  a  large  fish  attached  to  a  hook,  Peter, 
in  his  eagerness  to  clear  the  hook,  lost  his 


64  PETER   GOTT, 

balance  and  fell  over  the  side  of  the  boat. 
The  men  being  occupied  with  the  line, 
were  unable  to  seize  him  as  he  fell,  and 
being  encumbered  with  his  pea  jacket  and 
thick  boots,  he  immediately  sunk.  They 
prepared  to  seize  him  as  he  rose ;  but  as 
he  rose  at  some  distance  from  the  boat, 
they  failed  to  do  so.  After  struggling  for 
a  moment,  he  again  sank,  and  this  was  the 
last  they  saw  of  poor  Peter.  They  laid  by 
an  hour,  watching  for  his  rising,  but  he 
never  appeared.  They  had  cut  off  that 
portion  of  the  line  which  they  had  not 
taken  in,  and  now  slowly  and  with  sad 
hearts,  returned  to  the  vessel.  On  learn 
ing  the  loss  of  Peter,  the  skipper  and  two 
fresh  hands  jumped  into  the  boat  and  pulled 
for  the  buoys  ;  but  after  searching  for  half 
an  hour  in  vain,  they  returned  with  heavy 
hearts  to  the  Jane.  A  sudden  gloom  came 
over  them  all,  and  every  countenance  wore 
a  deep  expression  of  sorrow. 

Seamen  say  but  little  upon  the  subject 
of  death.  Indeed  they  seem  reluctant  to 
speak  of  it ;  yet  they  deeply  feel  the  loss 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  65 

of  a  messmate.  Although  there  is  but  a 
plank  between  them  and  a  watery  grave, 
death,  when  it  comes,  seems  as  unexpected 
to  them  as  to  men  on  land.  Peter  was  be 
loved  by  all  the  crew,  and  a  big  tear  stood 
in  every  eye,  when  it  was  certain  they 
would  see  him  no  more.  They  thought  of 
his  wife  and  children.  "  Poor  Patty,"  said 
one,  who  had  left  his  young  wife  and  child 
at  home,  "  it  might  have  been  me,  and 
then  what  would  Mary  have  done  ?"  and 
the  tears  flowed  afresh  at  the  thought. 
They  now  picked  up  Peter's  lines,  and  all 
his  traps,  and  stowed  them  in  his  chest, 
and  with  little  appetite  sat  down  to  their 
dinner. 

They  had  still  two  or  three  barrels  of 
salt  left ;  but  no  one  could  think  of  resum 
ing  the  fishing.  They  walked  the  deck  in 
silence,  or  going  into  the  cabin,  stretched 
themselves  upon  the  lockers.  Scarcely  a 
remark  was  made.  About  four  o'clock,  as 
the  skipper  emptied  the  ashes  out  of  his 
fourth  pipe,  he  quietly  remarked,  "  Well, 
boys,  I  don't  think  ye 're  inclined  to  fish 

6* 


66  PETER    GOTT, 

any  more,  and  I  think  we  may  as  well 
heave  up  the  anchor,  and  set  her  head  for 
Cape  Ann."  This  was  the  very  proposition 
which  they  all  desired,  and  which,  in  fact, 
they  had  been  expecting  all  the  afternoon. 
Indeed  one  or  two  of  the  men,  who  kept 
their  dunnage  in  the  forecastle,  had  for  an 
hour  past  been  overhauling  and  re-stowing 
it,  preparatory  for  the  run  home.  They 
immediately  set  about  making  preparation 
to  carry  the  skipper's  proposal  into  execu 
tion.  They  washed  their  lines  and  hooks 
in  fresh  water,  and  hung  them  over  the 
taffrail  to  dry.  They  cleaned  their  knives 
and  buckets,  and  stowed  them  in  the  hold. 
Covered  the  oil  butts,  put  on  the  hatches 
and  barred  them  down.  Then  they  bailed 
up  salt  water  and  scrubbed  down  the  deck, 
and  by  sundown  they  had  all  snug,  and 
ready  to  sail  in  the  morning. 

After  supper,  they  all  turned  in ;  but 
there  was  little  sleep  on  board  the  Jane 
that  night.  Their  hearts  were  sad,  and 
their  thoughts  were  far  away,  busied  with 
their  wives  and  little  ones,  nestling  among 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.  67 

the  rocks  of  the  Cape.  Nearly  eleven 
weeks  had  now  expired  since  they  left  the 
wharf  in  Pigeon  Cove,  and  Patty  was  look 
ing  for  their  speedy  return.  She  had  been 
for  some  time  counting  the  days  that  would 
intervene,  before  the  fourth  of  July,  which 
was  the  day  set  for  their  return.  For  a 
week,  she  had  seen  Mr.  Dennis  every  morn 
ing,  before  going  down  to  his  store,  stand 
ing  in  the  scuttle  of  his  house,  sweeping 
the  horizon  with  his  spy-glass,  to  see  if 
they  were  in  sight ;  and  she  had  gone  down 
regularly  to  the  cove  every  day,  after  giv 
ing  her  children  their  breakfast,  to  inquire 
the  news.  Here  she  generally  met  two  or 
three  other  women,  who  had  come  down 
on  the  same  errand.  On  the  very  morning 
that  the  Jane  left  the  Banks,  she  met  her 
cousin,  Jane  Tarr.  On  seeing  her,  she  ex 
claimed,  "  0  how  glad  I  shall  be  when 
Peter  comes.  Every  morning,  when  I  get 
back  from  the  cove,  little  Patty  says,  '  aint 
father  come  ?  when  will  father  come  ?  0 
I  shall  be  so  glad  when  he  comes !' " 

Poor  girl !  her  hopes  were  all  bright,  and 


68  PETER    GOTT, 

sunshine  was  in  her  loving  heart.  She 
little  thought  of  the  sad  bereavement  that 
awaited  her.  She  little  anticipated  the 
bitter  feeling  of  desolation  that  was  so  soon 
to  come  over  her,  and  which  she  was  to 
carry  with  her,  as  a  heavy  burden,  to  her 
grave.  The  blighted  hopes,  the  burning 
tears,  the  cruel  anguish  that  wrings  the 
widow's  heart,  how  little  did  she  imagine 
she  was  soon  to  know  them  all,  in  her  own 
bitter  experience.  She  had  repaired  his 
summer  clothes,  had  made  him  a  pair  of 
new  striped  shirts,  and  knit  two  pairs  of 
socks,  and  had  them  all  washed  and  ironed, 
and  neatly  stowed  in  a  basket,  which  Peter 
had  made,  during  a  snow-storm,  the  previ 
ous  winter.  She  had  some  hills  of  beans 
and  cucumbers  and  a  few  cabbages  growing 
in  a  little  patch  before  her  door,  which  she 
tended  with  the  skill  that  love  had  taught 
her,  because  Peter  would  like  them  so, 
after  being  so  long  away  upon  the  salt 
water,  without  the  taste  of  any  green  thing. 
Two  nice  broods  of  chickens  were  peeping 
and  scratching  among  the  rocks,  and  all 
was  bright  and  cheerful. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  69 

On  the  morning  to  which  we  have  refer 
red,  all  hands  on  board  the  Jane  turned 
out  with  the  first  gleam  of  day.  Each  man 
went  silently  and  quietly  to  his  work.  No 
discordant  sound  was  heard.  They  set 
about  weighing  the  anchor.  But  the  "  yeave 
ho !"  as  they  pulled  at  the  windlass  bars, 
had  a  faint  and  mournful  sound.  They 
next  set  the  jib  and  run  up  the  mainsail. 
The  skipper  took  the  helm,  and  as  she  felt 
the  breeze  that  was  rising  with  the  sun, 
put  her  away  before  it.  The  cook,  in  the 
meanwhile,  was  preparing  breakfast.  After 
partaking  of  this,  they  put  on  all  her  can 
vas,  and  laid  her  course  for  the  rocks  of 
Cape  Ann. 

Nothing  of  special  interest  occurred  dur 
ing  the  homeward  passage.  The  weather 
was  good ;  but  as  she  was  heavily  loaded, 
and  the  wind  blew  from  the  westward 
nearly  every  morning,  tKeir  progress  was 
slow.  About  eleven,  A.  M.,  the  wind  gen 
erally  hauled  to  the  eastward,  when  they 
put  on  all  sail,  and  made  the  most  of  it  till 
it  went  down  with  the  declining  sun.  Two 


70 


days  after  leaving  the  Bank,  they  fell  in 
with  the  ship  George,  bound  from  London 
to  Boston.  They  reported  their  catch,  and 
the  loss  of  a  man.  The  ship  reached  Bos 
ton  two  days  before  the  Jane  arrived  at 
her  port.  How  often  is  it  true,  that  "  com 
ing  events  cast  their  shadows  before  them." 
Skipper  Norwood  was  in  Boston,  and  had 
just  discharged  his  little  freighter  of  her 
cargo  of  dry  fish,  and  taken  in  some  stores 
for  Mr.  Dennis,  and  was  just  ready  to  sail 
when  the  George  came  up  to  the  wharf. 
The  mate  of  the  George,  seeing  a  Cape 
Ann  jigger  at  the  stern,  hailed  the  skipper 
and  reported  the  Jane  on  her  passage,  with 
the  loss  of  a  man  overboard.  The  jigger 
reached  Pigeon  Cove  that  night,  and  by 
sunrise  the  next  morning,  the  report  was 
circulating  among  the  families  at  Pigeon 
Cove,  Dog  Town  and  Sandy  Bay,  that  the 
Jane  was  coming/ and  that  one  of  her  hands 
wras  lost.  Great  anxiety  pervaded  all  minds, 
and  every  face  wore  an  expression  of  sad 
ness.  The  loss  of  a  man  at  sea,  was  no 
new  thing  in  their  experience,  yet  when 


THE    CAPE    ANN    FISHERMAN.  71 

such  an  event  occurred,  it  was  always  at 
tended  with  a  general  feeling  of  sorrow. 
The  inhabitants  are  all  connected  by  inter 
marriage,  and  constitute,  as  it  were,  one 
large  family,  and  when  one  of  their  num 
ber  is  lost,  it  is  felt  as  a  general  loss.  It  is 
with  them,  as  with  men  on  ship  board  at 
sea,  when  one  is  lost,  each  one  is  made  to 
feel  that  death  has  come  very  near  to  him, 
and  that  his  turn  may  be  next. 

When  Patty  went  down  to  the  cove  in 
the  morning,  she  learned  the  sad  news,  and 
oh !  how  her  heart  beat  with  anxiety  and 
fear.  A  sad  feeling  of  depression  came 
over  her,  as  she  slowly  returned  to  her  cot 
tage.  But  hope  still  predominated  in  her 
bosom  ;  she  could  not  realize  that  she  was 
to  be  the  principal  sufferer,  that  the  stroke 
was  to  fall  most  heavily  upon  her  head.  "  I 
hope  it  is  not  Jemmy  Tarr  !  Poor  Jane,  it 
will  kill  her  if  it  is !  And  Mary,  she  was 
married  but  a  year  ago  last  Christmas,  I 
hope  it  is  not  Tim !"  And  thus  she  went 
over  the  whole  list  of  the  families  con 
nected  with  the  crew,  finding  some  strong 


72 


reason  in  her  sympathizing  heart,  why  the 
loss  should  not  fall  upon  either  of  them. 
The  skipper  they  all  felt  was  safe ;  but  then 
it  might  be  his  son,  who  was  one  of  the 
crew,  so  that  his  wife  had  her  full  share  of 
anxiety  with  the  rest. 

How  little  do  the  farmers  and  dwellers 
in  the  country  know  of  the  anxiety  and 
cruel  suspense  which  the  families  of  sea 
men  and  fishermen  suffer*.  With  their 
friends  and  children  around  them,  and  rare 
ly  separated  from  them,  if,  in  the  course  of 
nature,  or  during  the  prevalence  of  some 
epidemic,  they  become  sick,  they  have  the 
privilege  of  ministering  to  their  wants,  and 
solacing  their  sufferings  by  all  the  kind 
offices  that  affection  can  suggest;  and  if  they 
are  taken  from  them,  they  follow  them 
affectionately  to  the  grave,  and  see  them 
decently  interred  in  some  consecrated  spot, 
where  their  parents  or  friends  have  been 
laid  before  them,  and  where  they  expect 
themselves  at  length  to  repose.  But  the 
mother  and  wife  of  the  sailor,  who  is  lost 
at  sea,  have  no  such  consolations.  They 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  73 

think  of  him  struggling  in  the  cold  waves, 
and  lying  upon  the  oozy  bed  of  the  ocean. 
Their  gentle  hands  have  not  been  permit 
ted  to  smooth  his  dying  pillow,  and  no  kind 
words  of  parting  can  they  treasure  up  in 
their  hearts,  as  precious  mementos  of  the 
departed.  There  is  nothing  to  break  the 
force  of  the  blow  as  it  falls  upon  them,  or 
to  mitigate  the  bitterness  of  their  grief. 

On  the  evening  of  the  second  of  July, 
the  crew  of  the  Jane  made  the  lights  on 
Thatcher's  Island.  In  the  course  of  the 
night  they  anchored  in  the  bay,  and  at  day 
light  hoisted  their  jib  and  worked  into  the 
cove,  and  made  fast  to  the  ring-bolt  on  the 
capstan  of  Dennis's  wharf.  The  sun  was 
just  rising  as  she  reached  her  wharf.  The 
news  of  her  arrival  almost  instantly  spread 
through  the  village.  But  all  was  still  and 
quiet  as  a  Sabbath  morning.  Most  of  the 
men  were  away  upon  the  water.  Mr.  Den 
nis,  Skipper  Norwood  and  his  two  men,  and 
the  few  men  and  boys  that  were  at  home, 
soon  collected  upon  the  wharf.  But  the 
women,  who  were  so  eager  the  day  before 


74  PETER    GOTT, 

to  learn  the  name  of  the  lost  one,  actuated 
by  a  common  feeling,  remained  at  their 
homes,  dreading  the  announcement  which 
must  but  too  soon  be  made.  As  soon  as 
they  had  made  all  secure,  the  skipper  and 
all  the  crew  washed  their  faces,  and  took 
their  several  ways  to  their  homes.  Patty 
was  busy  with  her  children,  in  the  expecta 
tion  of  soon  seeing  Peter  coming  across  the 
rocky  pasture,  upon  the  border  of  which 
her  cottage  stood, 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  75 


CHAPTER    VI. 

MR.  DENNIS  INFORMS  PETER'S  MOTHER  OF  HER  SAD 
LOSS.  —  KIND  NEIGHBORS.  —  THE  AFFLICTIONS  OF  THE 
POOR.  —  A  WIDOW'S  STRUGGLES,  AND  HER  REWARD. 

MR.  DENNIS  was  a  kind-hearted  man,  and 
no  sooner  had  he  learned  from  the  skipper 
the  circumstances  attending  Peter's  loss, 
than  he  took  his  way  along  the  footpath 
that  wound  its  course  among  the  rocks  and 
over  the  hill  to  Peter's  cottage.  The  mo 
ment  Patty's  eyes  fell  upon  him,  the  sad 
truth  flashed  into  her  mind.  As  he  enter 
ed  her  door,  her  heart  fell  like  lead,  and  a 
sense  of  suffocation  came  over  her.  "  Oh, 
Mr.  Dennis  ! "  she  exclaimed,  "  it 's  Peter ; 
it 's  he  that  is  lost ! "  and  she  fell  upon  a 
seat  near  the  door,  as  if  stunned  by  the 
overwhelming  blow. 

She  sat  for  a  time  speechless.  Mr.  Den 
nis  sat  down  by  her  side,  and  tried  to  speak 


76  PETER    GOTT, 

some  words  of  consolation.  Her  children, 
awed  by  the  expression  of  her  countenance, 
gathered  around  her.  Little  Mary,  the 
youngest,  who  was  sitting  upon  the  floor, 
crept  to  her  feet  and  put  up  her  hands  im 
ploringly.  Mr.  Dennis  took  her  upon  his 
knees.  Peter  and  Patty  stood  by  their 
mother's  side,  with  the  feeling  that  some 
terrible  calamity  had  befallen  them. 

At  length  little  Patty,  with  tears  stream 
ing  from  her  eyes,  exclaimed,  "  Is  father 
drownded  ?  Won't  he  never  come  home 
again  ?"  And  now  the  mother's  tears  burst 
out  in  sympathy  with  the  tears  of  her 
child,  and  catching  her  in  her  arms,  she 
cried,  "  Yes,  my  child,  dear  father  is  drown 
ed  in  the  deep,  cold  sea.  You  will  never 
see  him  any  more.  This  is  what  I  was 
always  afraid  of.  How  many  times  have  I 
dreamed  that  I  saw  him  struggling  in  the 
cold  waves !  But  he  did  it  for  the  best. 
Pie  went  for  my  sake,  and  for  the  sake  of 
the  children."  And  mother  and  child  min 
gled  their  streaming  tears,  as  if  they  gushed 
from  one  fountain.  After  waiting  a  few 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.  77 

minutes,  Mr.  Dennis  gently  placed  the 
child,,  that  had  been  quietly  sitting  upon 
his  knee,  upon  the  floor,  and  uttering  a  few 
kind  words,  withdrew,  and  left  her  alone 
with  her  sorrow. 

The  poor  have  no  time  for  sorrowing. 
The  demands  of  nature  require  of  them 
unremitting  exertion.  But  the  very  efforts 
which  their  circumstances  compel  them  to 
make,  enable  them  the  better  to  bear  the 
burden  of  their  griefs.  This  is  one  of  the 
ways  in  which  "  the  wind  is  tempered  to 
the  shorn  lamb."  It  seems  a  severe  disci 
pline  to  the  broken-hearted  widow,  to  be 
compelled,  even  in  the  first  hours  of  her 
fresh  bereavement,  to  assume  the  whole 
burden  of  that  care  which  has  been  hitherto, 
shared  by  a  kind  and  loving  husband,  and 
to  be  made  to  feel,  in  all  its  overwhelming 
force,  that  she  is  now  the  only  guide  and 
protector  of  her  children ;  and  yet  how 
often  does  the  destitute  widow  bear  up 
under  the  crushing  weight  of  her  burden, 
and  nerve  herself  for  the  stern  conflict  of 
life,  better  than  she  who  is  made  a  widow 

7* 


78  PETER    GOTT, 

in  circumstances  of  affluence,  without  a  care 
for  the  supply  of  her  future  wants,  and  sur 
rounded  by  sympathizing  friends.  She 
gathers  around  her  every  token  of  his  love 
and  every  memento  of  her  loss.  Scenes  of 
past  endearment,  words  of  affection  and 
smiles  of  love,  though  perhaps  long  forgot 
ten,  come  crowding  into. her  memory,  and 
she  thinks  there  never  was  loss  like  hers, 
and  refuses  to  be  comforted.  She  cherishes 
her  grief,  and  broods  over  her  sorrow  as 
though  it  were  a  duty  she  owed  to  the  lost, 
until  she  is  unfitted  for  the  high  responsi 
bilities  of  a  parent,  which  devolve  upon  her 
by  the  very  fact  of  her  being  released  from 
the  duties  of  a  wife.  Not  so  is  it  in  the 
cottages  of  the  laboring  poor.  New  cares, 
new  wants  and  new  responsibilities  demand 
of  the  widowed  mother  new  and  redoubled 
effort ;  and  these  new  cares  and  new  wants 
are  present  wants  and  present  cares.  They 
cannot  be  put  off  to  a  future  day.  These 
new  responsibilities  must  be  assumed  at 
once.  There  is  no  time  for  indulging  the 
"  luxury  of  grief."  Daily  bread  must  be 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHEKMAN.  79 

won  by  daily  toil.  The  mother's  heart 
makes  active  the  mother's  hands  ;  and. 
trusting  in  the  widow's  God,  she  finds 
"  strength  according  to  her  day." 

So  it  was  with  Patty.  Her  children, 
Peter's  children,  must  be  provided  for.  Af 
ter  the  first  burst  of  grief  was  over,  she 
set  herself  at  once  to  encounter  the  stern 
realities  of  life.  She  relied  chiefly  upon 
her  needle.  Her  poor  neighbors  were  able 
to  do  but  little  for  her,  but  that  little  they 
did  cheerfully  and  in  the  kindest  possible 
manner.  Many  a  thoughtful  father,  as  he 
was  dressing  his  fish,  after  his  return  from 
his  day's  work,  selected  a  nice  fish  and  sent 
home  by  little  Peter,  who  had  gone  down 
to  the  cove,  to  see  the  men  and  boats  as 
they  returned  at  night ;  or  when  he  put 
his  wooden  skewer  through  some  nice  slices 
of  halibut,  to  carry  home  for  his  supper, 
remembered  to  add  another  generous  slice, 
and  left  it  at  Patty's  door,  as  he  passed  by. 
When  James  Tarr,  in  the  late  autumn,  had 
placed  his  quintal  of  dry  fish  upon  his 
wheelbarrow,  to  carry  home  for  his  winter's 


80  PETER   GOTT, 

store,  he  thoughtfully  added  a  large  armful 
to  his  load,  and  left  them  at  her  cottage,  as 
he  passed  by  to  his  own  dwelling.  Many 
a  bowl  of  warm  chowrder  was  sent  in,  just 
at  the  time  when  it  was  most  wanted. 
Peter  was  now  in  his  seventh  year,  and 
often  he  would  take  his  father's  hatchet, 
stroll  off  into  the  neighboring  thicket,  and 
cut  a  bundle  of  bushes  and  young  beeches 
or  alders,  and  bring  them  home  for  fuel ; 
and  as  the  cold  weather  came  on,  many  a 
back-load  of  wood  was  thrown  down  before 
her  door  by  some  one  who  remembered 
the  widow  and  orphans.  Mary's  husband 
took  it  upon  himself  to  cut  the  wood  which 
was  thus  brought  to  her  door,  and  when 
the  snow  drifted  around  her  house,  he  al 
ways  brought  his  shovel,  and  made  her  a 
wide  and  clean  path. 

Much  of  the  land  in  the  interior  of  the 
Cape  belonged  at  that  time  to  the  Com 
moners,  as  they  were  called  ;  that  is,  it  be 
longed  in  common  to  the  proprietors  to 
whom  it  had  been  first  granted  by  the  gov 
ernment,  and  to  their  descendants  ;  it  had 


THE    CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  81 

not  passed  into  private  hands.  These 
rocky  hills  were  mostly  covered  with  wood, 
which  was  looked  upon  by  the  fishermen 
as  a  common  stock,  from  whence  they  ob 
tained  fuel  for  the  winter.  As  there  were 
no  roads  into  the  woods,  and  they  had  no 
teams,  they  brought  home  most  of  their 
wood,  in  bundles,  upon  their  shoulders. 
This  practice  was  continued  through  seve 
ral  generations,  and  has  scarcely  ceased, 
even  at  the  present  day.  The  land  had  all 
passed  into  the  hands  of  private  owners 
before  my  day.  But  it  was  with  great 
difficulty  that  the  fishermen  could  be  made 
to  understand  that  they  had  not  a  perfect 
claim  to  young  trees  wherever  they  could 
find  them.  Often,  of  a  cold  snowy  morn 
ing,  have  I  seen  a  group  of  fishermen  start 
ing  for  the  woods,  each  with  his  hatchet 
and  two  or  three  yards  of  cod  line.  When 
they  had  cut  as  much  as  they  could  con 
veniently  carry,  they  made  up  a  bundle 
with  the  line,  and  took  it  upon  their  shoul 
ders  and  trudged  home,  more  than  a  mile, 
perhaps,  through  the  snow.  More  than 


82  PETER   GOTT, 

once  have  I  seen  a  woman  staggering  under 
a  burden  of  wood,  which  it  seemed  impos 
sible  for  her  to  carry. 

This,  in  the  time  of  the  past  generation, 
was  no  uncommon  sight.  In  those  days, 
the  wives  and  daughters  of  the  fishermen 
worked  out  of  doors  a  considerable  portion 
of  their  time.  They  cultivated  their  little 
patches  of  land  with  garden  vegetables. 
They  gathered  their  fuel  in  the  summer. 
I  was  for  many  years  acquainted  with  an 
excellent  woman,  who  had  been  left  a 
widow,  with  a  large  family  of  children  de 
pendent  upon  her  for  a  living.  She  has 
often  told  me  how  she  used  to  put  on  a 
pair  of  thick  boots,  and  take  her  clam  fork 
and  go  upon  the  flats,  with  her  little  boys, 
and  dig  clams,  during  ebb  tide,  day  after 
day,  in  the  cold  of  autumn  and  winter,  to 
get  bread  for  her  children.  When  I  knew 
her,  she  was  in  circumstances  of  comfort, 
surrounded  by  her  children  and  grandchil 
dren,  who  looked  upon  her  grey  hairs  with 
reverence,  and  cheerfully  supplied  all  her 
wants.  For  several  years,  she,  with  her 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.  83 

little  boys,  brought  home  on  a  hand-sled, 
or  on  their  backs,  all  the  wood  which  they 
burned  through  the  long  cold  New  England 
winters.  She  persevered,  trusting  in  the 
widow's  God,  and  she  has  found  the  promise 
fulfilled,  "  Train  up  a  child  in  the  way  he 
should  go,  and  when  he  is  old  he  will  not 
depart  from  it."  Her  three  sons  and  five 
daughters  are  now  all  useful  and  respeci>- 
able  members  of  society.  The  wives  and 
daughters  of  the  fishermen,  in  those  days, 
were  accustomed  to  make  the  fish.  They 
were  thrown  in  heaps  upon  the  flakes  by 
the  men,  after  being  properly  salted,  and 
left  in  the  care  of  the  women.  They 
spread  them,  and  turned  and  tended  them, 
until  they  were  sufficiently  cured. 

Some  of  the  women  became  very  expert 
in  this  business,  and  were  employed,  at  day 
wages,  during  the  season  of  making  fish. 
Patty  was  thus  employed  for  many  days 
every  summer  by  Mr.  Dennis,  who  uni 
formly  treated  her  with  kindness.  He  fur 
nished  her  with  flannel  to  make  into  shirts, 
and  with  woollen  yarn  to  knit  into  socks, 


84  PETER    GOTT, 

and  although  he  was  very  strict  in  his 
reckoning,  yet  he  allowed  her  the  highest 
price,  and  now  and  then,  in  making  change, 
gave  her  the  odd  cent,  although  it  was 
justly  his  due.  Thus,  by  constant  toil,  by 
the  practise  of  the  most  rigid  economy,  and 
by  those  ingenious  shifts  which  were  sug 
gested  by  a  mother's  love,  she  managed  to 
feed  and  clothe  her  children.  At  the  close 
of  the  year,  it  would  have  been  impossible 
for  her  to  tell  how  her  daily  wants  had 
been  supplied,  nor  could  she  tell  from 
whence  her  supplies  in  future  were  to  be 
derived.  But  that  Providence  that  feeds 
the  little  birds,  and  clothes  the  lilies  with 
beauty,  watched  over  her  and  never  suffer 
ed  her  to  want. 

As  years  rolled  on,  though  the  wants  of 
her  children  increased,  yet  they  were  able 
to  render  her  more  assistance.  Many  a 
time,  during  the  long  evenings  of  winter, 
as  she  plied  her  needle  far  into  the  night, 
with  aching  eyes  and  weary  hands,  with 
the  wind  howling  and  the  snow  drifting 
around  her  little  cottage,  while  those  dearer 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  85 

to  her  than  life  were  sleeping  quietly  around 
her,  feelings  of  -desolation  and  sadness 
came  over  her,  and  she  was  almost  ready 
to  give  up  in  despair.  But  she  looked 
up,  and  behind  the  dark  cloud  she  saw  a 
gleam  of  light,  and  her  hope  revived  and 
her  courage  was  renewed.  No  New  Eng 
land  mother  will  apply  to  the  town  for  aid, 
until  reduced  to  absolute  despair.  A  feel 
ing  of  self-reliance,  a  love  of  independence, 
a  desire  to  see  her  children  standing  upon 
a  level  with  those  around  them,  sustain  her 
amidst  a  world  of  difficulties  and  hardships. 
Call  it  pride  if  you  will.  It  is  not  that 
pride,  connected  with  vanity,  which  is 
founded  upon  a  false  estimate  of  one's  char 
acter  or  merits,  which  prompts  one  to  con 
ceal  from  himself,  or  from  others,  his  true 
condition,  and  which,  in  the  order  of  Provi 
dence,  is  destined  to  mortification.  It  is  a 
feeling  founded  upon  true  self-respect,  which 
leads  to  the  formation  of  habits  of  industry, 
economy  and  integrity, — habits  which  nat 
urally  result  in  elevating  the  character  and 
condition  of  those  who  possess  them.  Thou- 


86  PETER    GOTT, 

sands  of  the  sons  of  New  England  have 
risen  from  the  struggle  with  toil  and  pov 
erty,  to  a  position  of  usefulness  and  respect 
ability,  and  have  had  cause  to  bless  the 
pride  of  the  mother,  who  has  directed  and 
encouraged  their  efforts. 

Patty,  in  common  with  her  neighbors, 
had  a  full  share  of  this  feeling ;  and  this, 
added  to  her  trust  in  the  widow's  God,  kept 
her  from  yielding  to  the  feelings  of  despon 
dency  that  sometimes  came  over  her.  Thus 
she  struggled  on,  and  with  the  lapse  of 
time  found  her  comforts  increasing,  and 
new  sources  of  supply  and  of  hope  opening 
up  before  her.  Her  character  for  honesty 
and  industry  was  well  established.  Her 
children  were  comfortably  clothed,  were 
affectionate  and  obedient  to  their  mother, 
respectful  to  their  superiors,  and  thankful 
for  the  little  aids  and  encouragements  which 
they  received  from  those  around  them. 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  87 


CHAPTER    VII. 

PETER'S  BOYHOOD.  —  HIS  EARLY  EDUCATION.  —  EN 
GAGES  IN  SHORE-FISHING.  —  VISIT  TO  THE  HARBOR 
WITH  HIS  MOTHER. 

PETER,  at  the  commencement  of  our  story, 
had  just  completed  his  sixteenth  year,  and 
was  able,  by  his  daily  labor,  to  contribute 
very  much  towards  the  support  of  the  fam 
ily.  As  he  handed  his  daily  earnings  to  his 
mother,  it  was  with  a  feeling  of  thankful 
ness  that  he  was  able  to  cheer  her  toil,  and 
do  so  much  for  her  assistance.  He  felt  as 
much  real  pleasure,  when  his  brother  ex 
hibited  his  new  cap,  or  his  sister  her  new 
shoes,  that  had  been  purchased  by  the 
money  which  he  had  earned,  as  when  he 
put  on  his  own  new  Kersey  jacket,  or  his 
new  thick  boots.  He  had  none  of  that 
selfish  feeling,  that  required  that  the  largest 
share  of  his  earnings  should  be  expended 


88  PETER   GOTT, 

for  himself.  Indeed,  he  looked  upon  his 
younger  brothers  and  sisters  with  no  small 
degree  of  parental  feeling,  while,  on  their 
part,  they  looked  up  to  him  with  feelings 
that  partook  of  filial  affection.  He  had 
been  their  guide  and  protector  in  their 
rambles  in  the  woods  and  on  the  hills, 
where  they  often  went  in  the  summer  for 
berries.  When  they  set  snares  in  the  fall 
and  winter,  for  partridges  and  rabbits,  he 
led  the  way.  He  was  with  them  when  they 
fished  for  cunners  from  the  rocks;  and  when 
they  ventured  from  the  cove,  in  Mr.  Den 
nis's  wherry,  for  mackerel,  he  had  always 
brought  them  safely  back  to  their  mother, 
to  whom  he  always  felt  that  he  was  respon 
sible  for  the  precious  charge  entrusted  to 
him.  Hence  had  sprung  up  the  filial  feel 
ing  with  which  they  regarded  him,  and  the 
parental  anxiety  which  he  felt  for  them. 

Patty  had  been  taught  to  read  in  her 
childhood,  and  by  the  aid  of  Perry's  spel 
ling-book,  she  had  taught  all  her  children 
to  read.  Peter  had  obtained  Dilworth's 
Assistant,  and  by  the  aid  of  Jemmy  Tarr, 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  89 

he  had  mastered  the  four  first  rules  of 
Arithmetic,  and  was  able  to  multiply  and 
divide  with  tolerable  correctness.  The 
nearest  school  was  at  Squam,  a  mile  and  a 
half  distant,  and  the  time  of  Master  Riggs 
was  fully  occupied  in  teaching  arithmetic 
and  penmanship  to  the  older  boys  and 
young  men.,  during  the  two  months  in  the 
winter,  which  were  occupied  by  his  school, 
so  that  Peter  had  derived  no  benefit  from 
the  free  school. 

When  he  was  fifteen  years  of  age,  he 
purchased  a  wherry  of  Mr..  Dennis,  for 
which  he  paid  out  of  the  earnings  of  the 
ensuing  summer.  At  first  he  seldom  went 
more  than  a  mile  from  the  shore,  and  never 
except  in  company  with  some  of  the  old 
men ,  who  followed  the  shore-fishing.  When 
fishermen  become  old  and  somewhat  infirm, 
they  seldom  ship  on  board  the  larger  crafts, 
but  confine  themselves  to  the  business  of 
making  fish  on  shore,  or  to  wherry  fishing. 
They  go  out  only  in  good  weather,  but 
being  well  acquainted  with  the  grounds 
which  are  frequented  by  the  fish,  they  are 

8* 


90  PETER   GOTT, 

often  quite  successful.  Young  boys  may 
be  often  found  in  company  with  them,  and 
if  they  are  kind  and  respectful  to  them, 
they  will  readily  impart  to  them  the  secrets 
of  the  craft. 

During  the  first  season,  Peter  generally 
kept  in  their  company.  He  had,  with  the 
assistance  of  his  mother,  manufactured  a 
sail  out  of  a  piece  of  an  old  schooner's  sail. 
He  next  cut  a  sapling  pine,  and  trimmed 
off  the  limbs,  peeled  off  the  bark,  and  fitted 
it  for"  a  mast.  Old  George  Saunders  showed 
him  how  to  step  his  mast,  and  assisted  him 
in  bending  his  sail,  so  that  when  the  wind 
was  fair,  he  was  saved  in  great  measure  the 
labor  of  rowing.  Peter  now,  when  on  a 
bright  morning  he  had  pulled  his  dory  out 
of  the  cove,  and  run  up  his  sail,  and  drawn 
his  sheet  taut,  and  shipped  his  rudder,  and 
taken  his  seat  in  the  stern,  felt  himself 
quite  a  man.  He  was  proud  of  his  boat, 
and  of  his  skill  in  managing  her.  A  quick 
eye  and  a  skilful  hand  are  often  needed  in 
managing  one  of  these  little  boats  along 
shore,  even  in  the  pleasant  days  of  summer. 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.  91 

Sometimes  a  white  squall  will  come  off 
shore,  so  unexpectedly,  that  before  the 
fisherman  can  let  go  the  sheet,  his  little 
craft  is  lying  with  her  gunwale  in  the  wa 
ter,  or  completely  capsized.  Many  a  poor 
fellow  has  been,  in  this  way,  emptied  into 
the  cold  water,  with  all  his  gear,  and  unless 
assistance  was  at  hand,  has  been  lost. 

In  August  and  September,  several  schools 
of  mackerel  came  into  the  bay,  and  Peter 
was  quite  successful  in  taking  them,  some 
times  making  three  or  four  dollars  a  day. 
Mr.  Dennis  furnished  him  with  barrels  and 
salt ;  and  with  the  assistance  of  his  brother, 
he  dressed  and  salted  them.  When  the 
mackerel  fishing  was  over,  he  liad  ten  bar 
rels  of  mackerel,  for  which  Mr.  Dennis 
allowed  him  five  dollars  a  barrel,  which, 
after  paying  for  the  barrels  and  salt,  left 
him  forty-four  dollars.  He  worked  dili 
gently  through  the  season,  and  after  pay 
ing  for  his  dory,  his  lines  and  bucket,  and. 
his  clams  for  bait,  his  earnings  at  the  close 
of  the  year  amounted  to  eighty  dollars,  in 
addition  to  which  he  had  a  pile  of  nice 


92  PETER   GOTT, 

scrods,  and  as  many  salted  fish  for  winter 
as  the  family  needed.  His  mother  ventur 
ed,  upon  the  strength  of  his  earnings,  to 
run  in  debt  a  little  at  Mr.  Dennis's  store  ; 
but  after  paying  off  the  whole,  she  had  a 
larger  sum  of  money  than  she  had  ever 
seen  at  one  time  since  the  death  of  her 
husband.  Peter  was  anxious  that  his  mo 
ther  should  have  some  articles  of  clothing 
more  comfortable  than  she  had  been  accus 
tomed  to  wear,  and  that  his  brothers  and 
sisters  should  share  with  him  the  comforts 
which  might  be  purchased  by  the  money 
he  had  earned.  He  never  once  thought  of 
hoarding  any  portion  of  it  for  his  own  use, 
or  spending  it  for  his  own  gratification. 

At  Peter's  urgent  request,  on  a  pleasant 
day,  the  week  before  Thanksgiving,  Patty 
set  out,  with  him  by  her  side,  for  the  "Har 
bor."  Gloucester  harbor  was  at  that  time 
quite  a  village,  and  contained  several  stores, 
in  which  a  much  larger  assortment  of  goods 
was  to  be  found  than  at  Mr.  Dennis's  store 
at  the  cove,  and  where,  it  was  supposed, 
cash  might  be  laid  out  to  much  better  ad- 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  93 

vantage.  The  women  from  all  the  settle 
ments  around  the  Cape  were  in  the  habit 
of  going  once  or  twice  a  year  to  the  Har 
bor,  to  lay  out  the  little  sums  which  they 
had  saved,  and  this  excursion  was  one  of 
the  events  of  the  year.  They  usually  went 
in  companies  of  three  or  four,  and  carried 
home  their  purchases  in  large  bundles. 
The  young  women  purchased  ribbons  and 
calicoes  and  morocco  shoes,  and  the  ma 
trons  linen  cloth,  India  cottons,  flannels, 
and  rnuslins  for  caps,  and  needles  and  tapes, 
and  various  articles,  of  which  mothers  only 
know  the  use.  Patty  had  made  an  excur 
sion  to  the  Harbor  every  year,  while  her 
husband  lived.  Peter  had  never  been  to 
the  Harbor,  except  on  one  occasion,  when 
he  went  round  with  Skipper  Norwood,  with 
a  deck-load  of  salted  pee,  which  was  to  be 
shipped  for  Bilboa.  Now  for  the  first  time 
he  visited  the  metropolis  of  the  Cape  with 
his  mother. 

They  arrived  at  the  Harbor  soon  after 
the  middle  of  the  day,  and  passing  through 
Middle  Street,  took  a  deliberate  survey  of 


94  PETER    GOTT, 

the  church,  which  had  just  been  completed, 
and  which  was  the  most  magnificent  struct 
ure  Peter  had  ever  seen.  Then  passing 
down  Centre  Street,  they  came  into  Front 
Street,  which  then,  as  now,  was  the  princi 
pal  business  street  of  the  village.  They 
went  into  one  of  the  largest  stores,  attract 
ed  by  the  gay  show  of  goods  at  the  win 
dows.  Peter  was  at  first  quite  bewildered 
at  the  variety  of  articles  displayed  on  the 
counter  and  shelves.  His  mother,  after 
deliberately  looking  around  the  shop,  began 
to  inquire  the  prices  of  the  several  articles 
which  she  wished  to  purchase.  The  first 
article  which  she  selected,  was  a  piece  of 
drab-colored  Kersey,  to  make  Peter  a 
jacket.  The  next  was  a  nice  Scotch  cap, 
and  then  a  large  cotton  handkerchief. 
These  were  for  Peter.  She  then  selected 
some  yards  of  cotton  and  linen  check,  for 
gowns  for  the  girls,  and  some  cotton  and 
wool  cloth  for  the  boys,  and  lastly,  a  pattern 
of  calico  for  a  gown  for  herself.  Peter  had 
been  for  some  time  looking  with  much  at 
tention  at  a  pile  of  nice  woollen  shawls  that 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  95 

lay  upon  the  counter.  When  she  had  com 
pleted  her  selection,  he  called  her  attention 
to  one  of  these,  that  had  struck  his  fancy. 
She  refused  to  take  it,  saying  that  she 
could  do  without  it,  and  that  they  could 
not  afford  it.  But  Peter  was  very  urgent 
that  she  should  have  it,  and  the  shopkeeper 
joined  him  in  persuading  her  to  take  it. 
At  length,  finding  that  Peter's  heart  was 
set  upon  it,  and  that  he  would  feel  hurt  if 
she  did  not  take  it,  she  consented.  Peter 
next  selected  a  pink  ribbon  for  his  sister 
Patty's  hair,  a  nice  piece  of  calico  for  an 
apron  for  little  Mary,  and  a  couple  of  pock 
et  knives  for  Jemmy  and  George.  He  then 
insisted  that  his  mother  should  put  on  her 
new  shawl.  The  goods  were  then  paid  for, 
and  packed  up  into  a  large  bundle,  which 
Peter  took  under  his  arm,  and  marched  off, 
by  the  side  of  his  mother,  more  highly  grat 
ified  with  her  respectable  appearance  in 
her  new  and  comfortable  shawl,  than  most 
lads  are,  when,  for  the  first  time,  they  put 
on  a  long-tailed  coat  and  a  standing  dickey. 
About  sundown  they  reached  their  home, 


96  PETER   GOTT, 

and  sat  down  to  a  warm  supper,  which  sis 
ter  Patty  had  got  ready  for  them,  with 
thankful  hearts.  When  Peter  retired  to 
his  humble  couch  that  night,  the  reflection 
that  he  had  been  able  to  do  so  much  for 
the  comfort  and  happiness  of  his  mother 
and  his  brothers  and  sisters,  caused  his 
heart  to  swell  with  gratitude,  and  he  felt 
completely  repaid  for  all  the  labor  he  had 
undergone.  His  joyful  feelings  kept  him 
awake  a  long  time,  as  he  lay  forming  plans 
for  the  future.  At  length  he  fell  into  a 
sweet  sleep,  while  pleasant  dreams  occupied 
his  mind.  He  fancied  himself  the  skipper 
of  a  nice  new  schooner,  while  his  brothers 
and  the  boys,  his  daily  companions,  com 
posed  his  crew.  They  brought  in  full  fares 
of  large,  fine  fish,  which,  when  spread,  cov 
ered  all  the  flakes  in  the  yard.  A  long 
tier  of  barrels,  filled  with  fat  mackerel,  was 
piled  upon  the  wharf.  A  neat,  new  house 
occupied  the  place  of  the  old  cottage ;  his 
mother,  dressed  in  her  new  gown,  and 
wrapped  in  her  nice  shawl,  superintending 
the  affairs  of  the  house,  and  Patty,  with  her 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.  97 

blooming  face,  her  hair  neatly  combed  and 
tied  with  a  pretty  pink  ribbon,  and  Mary, 
with  a  bright-colored  apron,  assisting  in  her 
labors,  were  always  the  most  prominent 
actors  in  the  shifting  scenes. 


98  PETER    GOTT, 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

HAKE   FISHING.  —  MAKING   ISINGLASS. 

IN  the  morning,  refreshed  and  happy, 
Peter  was  up  before  the  sun,  and  immedi 
ately  set  about  preparing  for  the  work  of 
winter.  In  the  latter  part  of  autumn  and 
the  early  part  of  winter,  hake  abound  in 
the  bays  and  coves  around  the  Cape.  This 
fish  is  inferior  to  the  cod.  It  is  about  the 
size  of  the  haddock,  is  somewhat  coarse 
meated,  and  covered  with  large  scales.  It 
is  taken  at  certain  seasons,  in  large  num 
bers,  and  salted  for  the  West  India  and 
South  American  markets,  where  it  is  con 
sumed  by  the  negroes  on  the  plantations. 
The  principal  article  received  in  exchange 
for  this  fish  is  molasses, — the  better  quali 
ties  of  which  are  sold  for  consumption  in 
families,  and  the  inferior  qualities  for  the 
use  of  the  distillers.  When  the  large  ves- 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.  99 

sels  are  laid  up  for  the  winter,  the  crews 
often  engage  in  hake  fishing.  Hake,  at  the 
time  of  which  we  are  speaking,  were  plenty 
in  Ipswich  Bay.  Some  of  the  men  at  the 
cove  had  already  caught  and  salted  several 
butts  of  these  fish.  The  sounds  of  the  hake 
are  much  larger  and  thicker  than  those  of 
the  cod  and  haddock,  and  it  is  from  these, 
chiefly,  that  the  American  isinglass,  or  fish 
glue,  is  manufactured.  The  sounds  are 
taken  out  by  the  fishermen  when  they 
dress  the  fish.  They  are  then  washed  in 
fresh  water,  by  the  women  and  boys,  and 
the  black  cuticle  with  which  they  are  cov 
ered,  rubbed  off.  They  are  then  strung 
upon  twine,  like  dried  apples,  or  spread 
upon  the  flakes  and  dried  in  the  sun. 

There  has  existed  for  many  years  at  Sandy 
Bay  a  factory  for  the  manufacture  of  isin 
glass.  More  than  thirty  years  ago,  a  patent 
was  granted  for  machinery,  by  which  it  is 
manufactured.  At  this  factory  one  may 
often  see  from  ten  to  twenty  cords  of  hake 
sounds  in  one  heap,  ready  to  undergo  the 
manufacturing  process.  This  process  con- 


100  PETER   GOTT, 

gists  in  soaking  the  dried  sounds  in  warm 
water  until  they  become  soft.  Then  they 
are  passed  between  iron  rollers,  by  which 
the  glutinous  mass  is  worked  into  large 
cakes,  about  half  an  inch  thick.  These  are 
passed  between  other  rollers,  until-  the 
whole  is  wrought  into  a  mass  of  uniform 
consistence.  This  is  now  passed  through  a 
succession  of  rollers,  from  the  last  of  which 
it  comes  out  in  ribbons,  about  four  inches 
wide,  and  several  yards  long,  of  about  the 
thickness  of  brown  paper.  These  ribbons 
are  then  hung  upon  poles  and  dried,  after 
which  it  is  screwed  into  barrels,  when  it  is 
ready  for  market. 

The  rollers  by  which  the  sounds  are 
wrought  into  isinglass,  were  formerly  turned 
by  cranks,  two  men  being  attached  to  each 
set  of  rollers.  This  work  was  mostly  done 
in  the  winter,  and  from  forty  to  fifty  fisher 
men,  chiefly  old  men,  were  engaged  in  this 
laborious  employment.  This  labor  is  now 
performed  by  a  steam  engine. 

The  hake,  for  some  unknown  reason, 
more  readily  take  the  hook  in  the  night 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         101 

than  in  the  day  time.  Probably  their  eyes 
are  so  formed,  that,  like  the  owl,  they  see 
better  in  the  night  than  when  the  sun  is 
shining.  However  this  may  be,  it  is  cus 
tomary  to  fish  for  them  in  the  night.  The 
men  go  out  in  their  dories  in  gangs  of  from 
three  to  six.  They  go  out  soon  after 
nightfall,  on  still,  pleasant  nights,  and  return 
before  dawn  in  the  morning.  It  is  a  cold, 
hard  and  dreary  business,  but  it  lasts  only 
a  few  weeks,  the  hake  then  leaving  the 
grounds  where  they  have  been  feeding. 
Probably,  as  the  water  becomes  cold,  they 
migrate  into  deeper  and  warmer  water. 

Peter  determined  to  join  one  of  these 
gangs  of  hakers.  His  mother,  at  first,  made 
many  objections ;  but  finding  him  in  ear 
nest  about  it,  she  consented  •  and  putting 
him  in  charge  of  old  Saunders,  who  prom 
ised  to  take  good  care  of  him,  she  clothed 
him  up  warm  and  fitted  him  off.  With  his 
Scotch  cap,  and  his  new  cotton  handker 
chief  around  his  neck,  about  six  o'clock  he 
stepped  into  his  dory,  and  pulled  out  with 
the  gang.  In  about  an  hour  they  reached 

9* 


102  PETER    GOTT, 

the  fishing  ground  in  Ipswich  Bay,  when 
they  threw  over  their  killicks  and  com 
menced  their  night's  work.  The  night  was 
dark  and  cold  ;  but  they  lay  within  a  few 
fathoms  of  each  other,  so  that  they  could 
call  to  each*  other  and  hear  each  other's 
movements.  They  soon  began  to  take  in 
fish.  At  first  Peter  pricked  his  fingers  in 
disengaging  the  hook  from  the  fish  in  the 
dark.  But  he  soon  learned  how  to  throw 
them  off  with  a  jerk,  without  exposing  his 
fingers  to  the  barb.  Before  midnight,  he 
found  it  hard  to  keep  awake,  and  his  head 
would  often  nod,  while  he  sat  waiting  for 
a  bite.  But  soon  a  sudden  pull  upon  his 
line  would  rouse  him,  when  he  would  draw 
in  his  hake.  At  times  his  feet  were  be 
numbed,  and  his  fingers  ached  with  the 
cold ;  but  the  taking  of  several  fish  in  rapid 
succession,  would  quicken  his  circulation 
and  restore  warmth  to  his  extremities. 

Thus  while  other  boys  of  his  age  were 
sleeping  quietly  in  their  warm  beds,  Peter 
was  upon  the  dark  waves,  with  the  cold, 
damp  wind  blowing  in  his  face,  with  no 


THE    CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          103 

shelter  but  the  broad  canopy  of  heaven, 
toiling,  with  wet  and  aching  fingers,  not 
for  himself,  but  for  his  dear  mother  and  his 
brothers  and  sisters.  Let  no  one  say  that 
warm  hearts  and  strong  affections  are  not 
found  in  the  bosoms  of  the  laboring  poor, 
or  that  they  are  not  capable  of  generous 
impulses,  and  great  self-sacrifice  for  others. 
Because  such  men  have  a  rough  exterior, 
and  a  weather-beaten  face,  shall  we,  who 
may  have  a  little  more  of  this  world's 
goods,  turn  away  from  them  and  treat  them 
with  disdain  ?  They  are  our  brethren,  and 
not  seldom  the  truest  brothers  we  have, 
and  entitled  to  our  sympathy  and  our  love, 
and  even  to  our  reverence,  for  the  kindness 
of  their  hearts  and  the  purity  of  their  lives. 
About  four  o'clock  in  the  morning,  hav 
ing  nearly  filled  their  boats,  they  took  in 
their  killicks  and  pulled  for  the  cove,  where 
they  arrived  about  daylight.  Leaving  his 
boat  upon  the  beach,  Peter  went  to  his 
home,  where  his  mother  was  ready  to  re 
ceive  him  with  a  nice  warm  breakfast. 
After  eating  his  breakfast,  and  resting  a 


104  PETER    GOTT, 

short  time,  he  returned  to  the  cove  and 
dressed  and  salted  his  fish,  which  took  him 
till  almost  noon.  His  brothers  carried  home 
the  bucket  of  sounds,  and  set  about  washing 
and  cleaning  them.  Their  mother  showed 
them  how  to  string  them,  and  they  soon 
had  them  drying  in  the  sun.  After  Peter 
had  got  his  dinner,  he  took  off  his  jacket 
and' boots  and  threw  himself  upon  the  bed 
and  slept  soundly  for  four  or  five  hours. 
But  he  was  awake  and  had  got  his  supper 
and  was  on  the  ground  at  the  appointed 
time,  ready  to  commence  the  labor  of  the 
succeeding  night.  This  he  continued  every 
pleasant  night  until  the  middle  of  Decem 
ber,  when  the  fish  becoming  scarce,  they 
quit  this  kind  of  fishing.  By  this  time  he 
looked  worn  and  weary. 

Young  persons,  during  the  period  of  their 
growth,  suffer  more  from  the  loss  of  their 
accustomed  sleep,  than  from  almost  any 
amount  of  labor  performed  during  the  day. 
In  truth,  Peter's  strength  was  not  suffi 
ciently  matured,  to  sustain  him  long  under 
the  unnatural  labor  to  which  this  night 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          105 

work  subjected  him.  The  loss  of  sleep,  the 
exposure  to  cold,  and  the  severe  labor  atr 
tending  this  night  fishing,  breaks  down 
many  of  the  strong,  hardy  fishermen,  and 
renders  them  prematurely  old,  giving  to 
men  of  fifty  the  appearance  of  seventy. 
It  is  well  for  them  that  the  hake  fishing 
lasts  but  a  few  weeks. 

Soon  after  the  close  of  this  work,  Peter 
commenced  the  regular  business  of  winter 
fishing,  in  which  we  found  him  engaged 
at  the  commencement  of  our  story.  Abra 
ham  Pool,  and  two  or  three  other  young 
sters,  were  his  frequent  companions.  Some 
twenty  or  thirty  fishermen,  residing  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  cove,  regularly  followed  the 
same  business.  It  is  a  kind  of  labor  that 
exposes  those  who  engage  in  it  to  great 
hardship.  They  endure  severe  cold.  Their 
feet  become  often  so  benumbed  that  they 
can  scarcely  walk.  Their  hands  are  con 
stantly  wret.  They  are  frequently  over 
taken,  while  out  on  the  water,  with  storms 
of  rain^  sleet,  or  snow.  Sometimes  when 
they  have  gone  out  on  a  pleasant  morning, 


106  PETER    GOTT, 

they  return  in  a  driving  snow  storm,  with 
their  boats  loaded  with  snow. 

As  people  in  the  country  sit  down  to  a 
dinner  of  nice  codfish,  they  little  think  of 
the  hardship  and  even  danger  to  which  the 
fisherman  has  been  exposed  in  taking  it. 
Many  of  these  men  suffer  much  from  rheu 
matism  and  neuralgic  pains.  Their  muscles 
become  contracted  and  stiffened,  and  they 
look  and  move  like  men  bowed  by  old  age. 
But,  notwithstanding  the  hardships  neces 
sarily  connected  with  their  business,  they 
pursue  it  patiently  and  unrepiningly,  and 
win  their  bread  from  the  ocean  by  unre 
mitting  toil. 

Peter  followed  this  kind  of  fishing  through 
the  winter  with  tolerable  success,  earning 
from  one  to  two  dollars  a  day  in  good 
weather.  During  the  stormy  days,  he  im 
proved  his  time  in  the  study  of  Daboll's 
Arithmetic,  and  in  learning  to  write,  and 
in  assisting  his  brothers  and  sisters,  who 
were  now  learning  to  add  and  subtract. 
The  family  got  through  the  winter  more 
comfortably  than  ever  before,  by  the  aid 
of  Peter's  labor. 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          107 


CHAPTER   IX. 

PETER'S  FIRST  TRIP  TO  THE  BANKS.  ; — HOW  THE  EARN 
INGS    OF    BANK    FISHERMEN    ARE     DIVIDED. PETER'S 

CARE    FOR    HIS    FAMILY.  —  SECOND     TRIP.  —  A     STORM 
AND    ITS    CONSEQUENCES. 

SOME  time  in  March,  Mr.  Dennis  pro 
posed  to  Peter  to  ship  on  board  one  of  his 
vessels,  offering  him  a  full  share  with  the 
men.  This  was  more  than  any  lad  of  his 
age  received,  and  was  considered  a  highly 
advantageous  offer.  Peter  immediately  told 
his  mother,  saying,  u  Now,  mother,  you  will 
not  have  to  work  so  hard.  Mr,  Dennis  has 
offered  me  a  full  share  if  I  will  ship  in  the 
Polly,  and  it  will  not  be  half  so  hard  as 
wherry  fishing."  This  proposal  brought 
to  Patty's  mind  the  scenes  and  the  feelings 
connected  with  her  husband's  trip  to  the 
Banks,  as  though  they  had  occurred  but 
yesterday,  and  her  eyes  filled  with  tears  at 
the  recollection.  She  promised  to  think  of 


108  PETER    GOTT, 

the  matter.  The  next  morning  she  went 
to  Mr.  Dennis's  store,  where  she  found 
James  Tarr,  who  had  ever  been  to  her  a 
faithful  friend.  They  joined  in  persuading 
her  that  this  was  an  opportunity  for  Peter 
which  she  ought  by  no  means  to  neglect. 
Especially  they  urged,  that  by  shipping  on 
board  a  Banker,  he  would  in  a  few  years 
be  qualified  for  a  skipper,  while  in  the 
shore  fishing  he  would  never  be  qualified 
for  this  office.  This  situation  is  the  one  to 
which  young  and  enterprising  fishermen 
look  forward  as  the  height  of  their  ambi 
tion;  and  Patty  felt  her  mother's  pride 
gratified  with  the  praises  which  they  be 
stowed  upon  her  darling  boy,  and  with  the 
prospect  of  soon  seeing  him  in  command  of 
a  fine  schooner.  These  considerations  pre 
vailed,  and  she  gave  her  consent,  and  im 
mediately  set  about  fitting  him  for  the 
voyage.  This  was  speedily  accomplished  ; 
and  early  in  April  he  sailed  in  the  schooner 
Polly,  Ca.pt.  Griffin,  of  sixty  tons,  for  the 
Grand  Bank. 

This  was  an  important  event  in  Peter's 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         109 

life,  and  her  neighbors  heartily  congratu 
lated  his  mother  upon  his  good  fortune. 
The  Polly  made  her  first  trip,  encountering 
only  the  usual  amount  of  wet  and  foggy 
weather,  and  returned  the  last  week  in 
June,  with  eight  hundred  quintals  of  fish. 
On  her  next  trip,  which  was  completed 
about  the  last  of  October,  she  brought  in 
seven  hundred  more.  This  made  her  fif 
teen  hundred  quintals.  These  fish  were 
sold  by  Mr.  Dennis  for  two  dollars  and 
twenty-five  cents  per  quintal,  amounting  to 
three  thousand  three  hundred  and  seventy- 
five  dollars.  The  oil  amounted  to  one 
hundred  and  twenty  dollars.  Half  of  this 
sum,  seventeen  hundred  thirty-seven  dol 
lars,  deducting  half  the  cost  of  the  salt,  or 
forty-three  dollars,  belonged  to  the  crew. 
From  this  also  was  to  be  deducted  five  per 
cent.,  which  belongs  to  the  skipper,  over 
and  above  his  equal  share  with  the  rest  of 
the  crew.  There  remained  then  to  be  di 
vided  among  the  nine  persons  on  board, 
sixteen  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  giving  to 

each  man  one  hundred  and  eighty-three 
10 


110  PETER    GOTT, 

dollars.  This  sum  was  more  than  the  aver 
age  made  by  the  Bankers  that  season.  But 
Capt.  Griffin  was  resolute  and  enterprising, 
and  most  of  the  crew  were  smart,  active 
men.  There  is  much  said  among  fishermen 
about  good  and  bad  luck  ;  and  indeed  ves 
sels  do  sometimes  seem  to  meet  with  a 
Godsend,  in  the  shape  of  a  fine  school  of 
fish.  But  it  is  generally  found  that  enter 
prising,  energetic  men  are  more  successful 
in  fishing,  as  well  as  in  all  other  kinds  of 
business. 

The  Polly  was  thought  to  have  been  re 
markably  lucky,  and  her  good  luck  was  a 
frequent  subject  of  conversation  in  the  fam 
ilies  at  the  cove  through  the  ensuing  win 
ter.  Peter  was  now  thought  to  be  rich, 
and  many  of  his  neighbors  congratulated 
him  upon  his  success,  There  were  few 
among  them,  even  those  who  had  earned 
but  little,  who  envie$  his  good  fortune. 
He  was  known  to  be  so  kind  to  his  mother, 
and  to  have  worked  so  hard  for  the  support 
of  his  family,  that  all  his  neighbors  consid 
ered  it  but  his  just  reward. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         Ill 

After  paying  Mr.  Dennis  for  the  articles 
which  he  had  had  by  way  of  outfit,  and  for 
what  his  mother  had  taken  up  for  the  fam 
ily  during  the  summer,  he  had  one  hundred 
and  ten  dollars  left.  This  he  put  into  his 
mother's  hands,  with  the  request  that  she 
w^ould  use  it  for  the  comfort  of  herself  and 
the  children.  The  usual  excursion  to  the 
Harbor  was  undertaken,  and  a  stock  of 
clothing  purchased  for  the  winter.  Some 
articles  of  comfort  were  added  to  their 
scanty  stock  of  furniture.  -  Peter  employed 
a  carpenter  to  make  him  a  nice  sea-chest. 
When  the  carpenter  had  completed  this 
chest,  he  engaged  him  to  shingle  the  cot 
tage  and  repair  the  windows,  and  make  a 
new  door.  These  repairs,  in  addition  to 
some  others  made  by  himself,  rendered  their 
habitation  more  comfortable  than  it  had 
been  for  several  years.  He  then  procured 
some  cheap  lumber,  and  erected  a  shed  to 
protect  their  fuel  during  the  storms  of 
winter ;  then  he  and  his  brothers  labored 
diligently  for  several  days  in  collecting 
fuel.  This  they  piled  up  snugly  in  the 


112  PETER   GOTT, 

shed  which  he  had  built.  These  various 
operations  occupied  the  whole  of  the  month 
of  November. 

Peter  was  not  disposed  to  engage,  this 
year,  in  the  work  of  night  fishing  ;  but  he 
got  out  his  dory  and  caulked  anew  her  gap 
ing  seams,  and  payed  her  bottom  with  tar, 
and  painted  her  gunwales,  and  fitted  her 
with  a  new  set  of  thole-pins,  and  overhauled 
his  lines,  and  got  ready  for  winter  fishing. 
Most  of  the  men  who  go  to  the  Banks  in 
the  summer,  refuse  altogether  to  engage  in 
fishing  in  the  winter,  especially  if  they  have 
had  tolerable  luck  in  the  summer.  A  few 
of  them,  as  we  have  already  stated,  engage 
in  foreign  voyages  for  the  winter,  but  most 
of  them  spend  their  time  in  idleness,  from 
the  time  the  vessel  is  hauled  up  until  she 
is  fitted  out  again  in  the  spring,  by  which 
time  they  have  generally  consumed  all 
they  had  earned,  and  run  up  a  considerable 
bill  at  the  store.  But  Peter  had  grown  up 
with  habits  of  industry,  and  had  been  ac 
customed  to  labor  in  winter,  as  well  as  in 
summer ;  so  he  joined  the  company  of  win- 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         113 

ter  fishermen  ;  and  every  pleasant  morning 
through  the  winter  was  one  of  the  first  to 
get  his  wherry  afloat,  and  put  out  into  the 
bay  for  a  day's  work.  The  fish  which  he 
caught  through  this  winter,  amounted  to 
sixty  dollars  ;  in  addition  to  which,  he  car 
ried  home,  for  the  use  of  the  family,  every 
day  a  fresh  fish,  a  good  mess  of  cods'  heads, 
or  a  nice  mess  of  tongues  and  sounds.  So 
that  instead  of  consuming  the  earnings  of 
the  previous  summer,  his  labors  supported 
the  family,  and  in  the  spring,  they  found 
themselves  possessed  of  even  more  than 
they  had  in  the  fall. 

When  the  spring  arrived  Peter  shipped 
again  for  the  Banks.  They  sailed  the  first 
week  in  April.  The  weather  was  cold  and 
stormy,  and  they  had  a  boisterous  passage 
to  the  Banks.  They  were  driven  out  of 
their  course  far  to  the  eastward  of  the  Banks, 
and  it  was  fourteen  days  before  they  found 
themselves  on  the  fishing  ground.  They 
did  very  well  for  a  few  days ;  but  the 
weather  was  cold  and  cloudy,  and  they  had 
frequent  snow  squalls.  At  length,  after  an 
10* 


114  PETEE   GOTT, 

unusually  pleasant  night,  the  wind  began 
to  blow  from  the  east  in  gusts,  accompanied 
with  a  peculiar  howling  sound,  and  the  sea 
was  heaving  with  a  heavy  swell.  As  they 
were  going  below  to  breakfast,  the  skipper 
observed,  "  After  we  have  had  our  grub,  we 
must  make  all  snug,  for  we're  going  to 
have  a  snorter."  When  they  returned  on 
deck,  the  wind  was  blowing  in  sharp,  spite 
ful  gusts,  and  the  snow  was  rapidly  falling. 
They  immediately  dressed  off  all  the  fish 
that  were  on  deck,  gathered  up  their  fish 
ing  gear  and  carried  it  below,  barred  down 
the  hatches,  secured  the  water  cask,  and 
made  every  thing  as  fast  as  possible.  Be 
fore  noon  the  storm  had  fearfully  increased. 
The  wind  blew  a  hurricane ;  the  snow 
drifted  in  sheets  along  the  surface  of  the 
ocean,  and  so  filled  the  air  that  it  was  im 
possible  to  see  to  windward  the  length  of 
the  vessel.  They  payed  out  all  their  cable, 
expecting  every  moment  that  it  would  part, 
or  that  the  vessel  would  drag  the  anchor. 
But  she  'held  on  through  the  remainder  of 
the  day,  and  until  about  daylight  the  next 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         115 

morning.  The  night  was  a  fearful  one. 
The  vessel  hove  and  rolled  the  livelong 
night.  About  daylight  the  cable  parted. 
There  had. been  no  sleep  on  board  through 
the  long  watches  of  that  night. 

The  moment  the  cable  parted,  the  skip 
per  sprung  to  the  helm  and  tried  to  keep 
her  head  to  the  wind  ;  but  finding  that  in 
spite  of  all  his  efforts  she  would  broach  to, 
he  determind  to  get  her  before  the  wind, 
and  scud  under  bare  poles.  To  effect  this, 
he  watched  his  opportunity,  and  the  first 
time  she  broached  to,  he  gave  her  the 
helm  ;  but  as  she  fell  off,  a  heavy  sea  struck 
her  broadside  and  buried  her  many  feet 
deep  under  the  green  waters.  For  a  mo- 
ment  it  seemed  as  if  she  were  settling  down 
into  the  depths  of  the  ocean ;  but  in  ano 
ther  moment  she  came  up,  trembling  in 
every  joint,  and  freed  herself  from  the 
water.  The  men  caught  by  the  stays,  and 
clinging  with  a  death  grasp,  saved  them 
selves  from  being  washed  overboard.  When 
the  vessel  righted,  it  was  found  that  her 
windward  bulwarks  had  been  carried  away, 


116  PETER   GOTT, 

her  boat  stove,  and  every  thing  movable 
had  been  washed  from  the  deck.  Before 
the  succeeding  sea  reached  her,  she  had 
come  round,  and  shot  forward,  like  a  bound 
ing  steed,  before  the  wind. 

She  held  on  her  course,  pitching  and 
plunging  through  the  foaming  waves  until 
past  the  middle  of  the  day,  when  the  storm 
began  to  abate.  As  soon  as  she  would 
bear  it,  they  got  up  a  double-reefed  fore 
sail,  and  just  at  night,  a  small  piece  of  the 
mainsail,  so  as  to  keep  her  steady,  and  hold 
on  her  course  through  the  night.  Before 
morning  the  wind  got  into  the  north-west, 
and  the  sky  cleared  up ;  but  a  high  sea 
continued  to  run  for  two  or  three  days. 
As  they  had  lost  their  best  anchor  and 
cable,  and  their  boat  was  stove,  and  their 
bulwarks  badly  damaged,  the  skipper  de 
cided  to  run  home.  The  first  light  they 
made,  was  that  of  Cape  Cod.  The  wind 
being  northerly  and  the  sea  rough,  they 
were  three  days  more  beating  about  the 
bay,  before  they  reached  their  port.  It  was 
about  four  weeks  before  the  repairs  were 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         117 

completed,  and  they  were  ready  for  sea 
again. 

It  was  now  the  first  week  in  June.  The 
first  trip,  of  course,  was  lost.  But  they 
were  successful  on  the  summer  trip,  and 
filled  the  vessel,  and  reached  home  by  the 
10th  of  September.  On  selling  the  fish 
and  making  up  the  voyage,  they  divided 
ninety-two  dollars  to  each  man.  This  was 
their  whole  summer's  work, — all  they  had 
earned  during  the  six  best  months  of  the 
year, — from  the  first  of  April  to  the  end  of 
September.  The  outfits  which  Peter  had 
taken  up  in  the  spring,  and  the  bill  for 
goods  which  his  mother  had  taken  up  dur 
ing  the  summer,  amounted  to  sixty-two 
dollars,  leaving  but  thirty  dollars  for  Peter 
to  receive  on  the  settlement.  Most  of  the 
crew  were  in  debt  to  Mr.  Dennis,  their 
families  having  taken  up  more  than  ninety- 
two  dollars. 

To  a  man  under  such  circumstances,  with 
a  wife  and  children  to  feed  and  clothe,  the 
approach  of  a  long  and  cold  winter  is  any 
thing  but  agreeable.  In  all  our  fishing 


118  PETER    GOTT, 

ports,  such  instances  occur  nearly  every 
year ;  and  some  years,  the  number  is  by 
no  means  small.  Such  men  are  then  en 
tirely  dependent  upon  what  they  can  earn 
from  day  to  day,  during  the  short,  cold 
days  of  winter.  Perhaps  they  have  never 
been  accustomed  to  winter  fishing,  and  own 
no  wherries  or  fishing  gear.  They  have 
no  money  to  purchase  them.  If  they  run 
in  debt  for  them,  it  will  take  half  the  win 
ter's  earning  to  pay  for  them.  If  they 
should  be  taken  with  sickness,  in  conse 
quence  of  their  unwonted  exposure,  their 
families  are  often  thrown  into  circumstances 
of  real  distress,  and  become  dependent  on 
charity  for  their  daily  bread. 

But  Peter  had  no  feelings  of  discourage 
ment.  He  was  accustomed  to  labor  in  the 
winter,  and  he  expected  to  do  it.  He 
was  now  a  stout  young  man  of  nineteen, 
and  his  brother  was  fourteen.  He  was  not 
in  debt,  but  had  something  in  the  locker, 
and  he  would  not  allow  his  mother  to  de 
prive  herself  of  any  of  the  comforts  to 
which  she  had  been  accustomed  for  the  last 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         119 

two  years.  Capt.  Griffin  determined  to 
make  an  effort  to  retrieve  the  bad  luck  of 
the  year,  not  so  much  on  his  own  account, 
as  on  account  of  some  of  the  crew,  who 
had  large  families  to  support.  So,  instead 
of  hauling  up  his  vessel,  he  proposed  to 
Mr.  Dennis  that  he  should  fit  her  out,  and 
let  them  try  their  luck  at  pollocking. 


120  PETER   GOTT, 


CHAPTER   X. 

POLLOCK     FISHING. —  LOBSTER     CATCHING. —  POLITICAL 
TROUBLES. 

THE  pollock  is  a  kind  of  fish  that  is  found 
in  schools,  and  is  sometimes  found  in  im 
mense  numbers  on  our  coasts,  late  in  the 
autumn,  on  its  return  from  the  north  to 
more  southern  regions.  It  is  about  the 
size  of  the  codfish — has  a  sharper  head,  and 
its  back  is  of  a  dark  blue  color.  Its  flesh 
is  somewhat  coarser  and  darker  than  that 
of  the  cod,  and  contains  more  gluten. 
When  this  fish  is  preserved  with  but  little 
salt,  and  dried  in  the  cool  weather  of  au 
tumn,  it  is  a  favorite  fish  for  the  table.  It 
is  eaten  raw,  stripped  into  small  pieces. 
But  it  is  generally  high  salted,  and  shipped 
with  the  hake  to  the  south,  for  the  use  of 
the  plantation  negroes. 

The  pollock  is  caught  and  cured  in  the 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          121 

same  way  as  the  cod.  The  season  for  tak 
ing  it  lasts  but  a  few  weeks.  Capt.  Griffin 
was  ready  about  the  last  of  October,  and 
was  joined  by  most  of  the  men  who  had 
been  with  him  to  the  Banks.  Two  of 
them,  men  who  had  no  families,  had  gone 
to  Boston,  to  ship  for  a  voyage  to  St.  Do 
mingo.  Their  places  were  readily  supplied 
by  two  other  men.  They  went  as  far  east 
as  Mount  Desert,  and  in  the  course  of  three 
weeks  took  four  hundred  quintals,  worth, 
when  cured,  one  dollar  and  a  quarter  per 
quintal.  This  gave  to  each  man  about 
twenty-seven  dollars,  a  matter  of  no  small 
importance  to  a  destitute  family. 

The  Polly  was  now  stripped,  and  laid  up 
for  the  winter.  Most  of  the  men  immedi 
ately  engaged  in  winter  fishing,  and  those 
who  were  industrious  got  through  the  win 
ter  without  absolute  suffering. 

By  the  first  of  December,  Peter  was  in 
his  wherry,  engaged  in  his  usual  winter 
employment.  He  was  tolerably  successful, 
although  the  codfish  had  mostly  left  the 

coast.     These  fish  often  leave  the  coast  in 
11 


122  PETER    GOTT, 

the  winter  almost  entirely.  When  this  is 
the  case,  the  fishermen  depend  chiefly  upon 
the  haddock.  These  fish  are  somewhat 
smaller  than  the  cod,  and  are  esteemed  in 
ferior  to  them  when  codfish  are  plenty ; 
the  haddock  do  not  bring  so  high  a  price 
in  the  market  as  the  cod.  But  when  cod 
are  not  to  be  had,  the  haddock  sell  freely 
at  about  the  same  price  that  is  usually  paid 
for  cod.  The  flesh  of  the  haddock  is  white 
and  delicate,  but  drier  and  less  glutinous 
and  oily  than  the  cod.  When  salted  and 
dried,  they  become  very  hard,  and  will 
keep  well.  In  this  state  they  are  shipped 
in  great  quantities,  with  hake  and  pollock, 
to  the  southern  market. 

About  the  first  of  March,  Peter  engaged 
in  the  service  of  a  company,  that  had  set 
up  an  establishment  for  the  catching  of 
lobsters,  on  Thatcher's  Island.  These  shell 
fish  formerly  abounded  along  the  rocky 
shores  of  the  Cape,  and  were  often  taken 
of  very  large  size.  There  still  exist,  among 
the  fishermen,  traditions,  of  a  somewhat 
mythical  character  indeed,  of  lobsters  hav- 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.         123 

ing  been  taken  that  weighed  forty  pounds. 
If  there  is  any  truth  in  these  traditions,  the 
Pilgrim  Fathers  must  have  found  "  feasts  of 
fat  things  among  the  treasures  of  the  sand." 
From  traditions  of  the  same  date  we  learn 
that  the  clams  and  quohogs  of  those  days 
corresponded  in  size  to  these  many-armed, 
mail-covered  monsters.  What  glorious  clam 
bakes  they  must  have  had ! 

Lobsters  are  taken  in  a  sort  of  baskets 
called  lobster-pots.  These  are  about  three 
feet  long,  and  two  feet  wide,  of  semi-cylin 
drical  form,  that  is,  the  bottom  is  flat  and 
the  sides  and  top  are  in  the  form  of  an 
arch.  At  each  end  is  an  opening  for  the 
ingress  of  the  lobster ;  around  this  opening 
are  placed  short  flexible  pieces  of  wood, 
projecting  into  the  basket,  so  arranged  that 
they  will  easily  separate  and  allow  the  lob 
ster  to  enter,  but  their  points  close  together 
after  him  and  prevent  his  egress.  They 
have  a  door  upon  the  top,  through  which 
the  lobster  is  taken  out. 

A  long  line  is  attached  to  these  pots ;  a 
heavy  stone,  sufficient  to  sink  them,  is 


124  PETER    GOTT, 

placed  in  them,  and  they  are  baited  with 
the  heads  or  offal  of  fresh  fish,  and  sunk  to 
the  bottom  at  about  low  water  mark  ;  the 
other  end  of  the  line  is  made  fast  to  a  block 
of  light  wood,  called  a  buoy.  The  fisher 
men  go  out  with  their  wherries,  freighted 
with  these  pots,  and  drop  them  at  short 
intervals  along  the  shore.  During  the  sea 
son  of  lobster  fishing,  which  lasts  from 
March  to  July,  hundreds  of  these  buoys 
may  be  seen  bobbing  up  and  down  like  so 
many  seals'  heads.  The  fishermen  visit 
them  every  morning,  draw  them  up  along 
side  of  their  boats,  take  out  the  lobsters, 
replenish  the  bait,  and  drop  them  again 
into  the  water.  The  lobsters,  when  first 
taken,  are  very  fierce,  and  seize  with  their 
strong  pincers  upon  whatever  may  be  with 
in  their  reach.  When  thrown  together 
into  the  boat,  they  will  grapple  with  each 
other  and  tear  off  each  other's  feelers  and 
legs.  Without  much  care  in  handling  them, 
the  fingers  of  the  fishermen  get  many  a 
hard  bite.  To  prevent  them  from  injuring 
each  other,  the  fishermen  provide  sharp- 


THE   CAPE    ANN    FISHERMAN.          125 

pointed  wooden  pegs,  which  they  insert 
into  the  joint  or  hinge  of  their  pincers, 
which  prevent  them  from  closing.  When 
they  have  visited  all  their  pots,  they  row 
to  their  landing-place.  If  they  now  wish 
to  preserve  them  for  several  days,  they  put 
them  into  a  long  box  or  kench,  made  of 
plank  and  bored  full  of  holes,  which  is 
moored  in  the  water  at  a  little  distance 
from  the  shore.  If  they  wish  to  prepare 
them  immediately  for  market,  they  are 
taken  ashore  in  hand-barrows  and  carried 
to  a  sort  of  shed,  in  which  is  fixed  a  large 
cauldron.  This  is  filled  with  water.  A 
brisk  fire  is  kindled  under  this  kettle,  and 
when  the  water  boils,  the  living,  crawling, 
squirming  lobsters  are  thrown  into  it  and 
covered  with  a  heavy  plank  cover.  Here 
they  are  kept  boiling  until  their  color, 
which  when  taken  out  of  the  water  was  a 
dark  green,  becomes  a  bright  scarlet.  They 
are  now  ready  for  the  market.  In  this  state 
we  see  them  for  sale  on  the  stalls  in  our 
cities  and  hawked  about  the  streets. 

Peter   continued   in   this    employment 
11* 


126 


through  the  month  of  March.  It  is  a  busi 
ness  attended  with  severe  exposure  to  the 
weather,  and  often,  when  the  water  is 
rough  and  the  surf  is  breaking  upon  the 
shore,  with  considerable  danger.  He  was 
glad  to  be  freed  from  it ;  and  about  the 
first  of  April  engaged  in  fitting  out  the 
Polly  again  for  the  Banks.  She  sailed  on 
the  tenth,  and  made  two  trips  during  the 
season  with  tolerable  success.  His  share  of 
the  proceeds,  this  year,  was  two  hundred 
and  twenty  dollars.  His  brothers  and  sis 
ters  were  now  able  to  earn  their  own  liv 
ing.  One  of  his  sisters  was  living  as  a 
housemaid  in  the  family  of  C  apt,  Saunders, 
at  the  Harbor.  By  her  industry,  fidelity, 
and  good  temper,  she  had  secured  the  good 
will  and  confidence  of  this  family,  and  re 
ceived  from  them  many  presents,  in  addi 
tion  to  the  two  and  sixpence  per  week 
which  she  received  as  wages.  Patty  was 
now  in  circumstances  of  much  comfort,  and 
was  considered  by  her  neighbors  as  quite 
independent.  Having  studied  in  the  school 
of  affliction,  she  had  a  sympathizing  heart 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          127 

for  all  who  were  suffering  from  bereavement 
or  want,  and  was  ever  ready  to  aid  them  by 
her  counsels,  and  to  impart  to  them  of  her 
moderate  store.  She  found  frequent  occa 
sion  for  her  services  among  the  sick,  and 
wTas  looked  up  tot  by  all  her  acquaintance 
with  much  confidence  and  respect.  But 
other  trials  were  now  preparing  for  her — 
trials  which  she  was  to  undergo  in  common 
with  her  neighbors  and  countrymen.  The 
cloud  which  for  years  had  been  gathering 
over  the  political  horizon,  but  which  had 
hitherto  but  little  affected  these  peaceful 
dwellers  upon  the  shore,  was  daily  growing 
darker.  The  difficulties  between  the  colo 
nies  and  the  mother  country  were  begin 
ning  to  assume  a  serious  aspect.  The  trade 
of  Boston  was  much  embarrassed,  and  its 
entire  extinction  threatened.  It  was  be 
coming  difficult  for  the  fishermen  to  obtain 
from  Boston  the  means  of  fitting  out  their 
vessels,  and  the  market  for  their  fish  was 
growing  uncertain. 

The  next  March,  the  owners  of  fishing 
vessels  in  Gloucester  sent  a  vessel  to  Ports- 


128 


mouth,  for  the  first  time,  to  obtain  salt,  be 
cause  it  could  not  be  obtained  in  Boston. 
Arid  it  was  with  difficulty,  and  at  a  high 
cost,  that  they  obtained  molasses,  pork  and 
meal  for  their  Bankers.  Sailcloth,  cordage 
and  anchors  had  hitherto  been  almost  en 
tirely  imported  from  England.  As  the 
trade  with  the  mother  country  became  in 
terrupted,  these,  and  other  needful  articles, 
assumed  an  exorbitant  price.  The  fisher 
men  struggled  along  under  these  difficul 
ties  until  Boston  harbor  was  actually  closed 
by  the  presence  of  a  British  fleet. 

From  that  time,  owing  to  the  impossibil 
ity  of  obtaining  the  means  of  sailing  their 
vessels,  to  the  loss  of  their  market,  and  to 
the  danger  of  capture  by  British  cruisers, 
the  Bank  fishing  was  entirely  given  up. 
During  the  seven  years  that  followed,  the 
only  branch  of  the  fisheries  pursued,  was 
the  shore  fishing.  This  was  carried  on  to 
some  extent,  in  small  sail-boats  and  wher 
ries,  especially  in  the  winter,  when  cruisers 
could  not  remain  on  the  coast.  These  boats 
pursued  their  business  between  Cape  Ann 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         129 


and  Cape  Cod,  running  out  occasionally  as 
far  as  the  middle  bank,  and  carried  their 
fares  into  Boston  and  Salem  for  a  market. 
A  small  trade  also  sprung  up  between  the 
coast  and  the  interior,  the  farmers  carrying 
their  pork  and  corn  to  the  coast,  and  ex 
changing  them  for  fresh  or  salted  fish. 
But  the  Bank  fisheries,  which  just  before 
the  Revolution  had  become  of  great  value, 
were  completely  ruined,  and  the  men  en 
gaged  in  them  were  driven  to  seek  other 
employments,  to  obtain  a  livelihood.  Some 
few,  who  had  acquired  sufficient  means, 
removed  into  the  country  and  purchased 
land  and  became  farmers.  But  sailors  and 
fishermen  are  in  general  averse  to  engage 
in  any  occupation  upon  the  land.  They 
prefer  to  linger  upon  the  shore,  and  draw 
a  precarious  subsistence  from  the  ocean. 
A  sailor,  when  away  from  the  water,  is  like 
a  fish  out  of  his  proper  element.  The 
mountain  and  the  forest  have  no  charms 
for  him.  But  the  fishermen  entered  heart 
ily  into  the  struggle  for  the  defence  of  the 
liberties  of  their  country.  Two  companies 


130  PETER    GOTT, 

of  militia,  from  the  Cape,  under  Capts. 
Warner  and  Kowe,  were  in  the  battle  of 
Bunker  Hill.  Two  men  were  killed  and 
two  wounded  in  Capt.  Warner's  company, 
and  three  killed  and  two  wounded  in  Capt. 
Rowe's,  in  that  battle.  Capt.  Warner's 
company  continued  in  the  service,  under 
Washington,  and  was  in  the  famous  retreat 
from  Long  Island.  Upwards  of  two  hun 
dred  and  twenty  men  voluntarily  enlisted 
from  the  Cape,  during  the  first  campaign 
of  the  Revolution.  When  Congress  re 
quested  every  State  to  furnish  its  full  quota, 
137  men  were  assigned  as  the  proportion 
from  Gloucester. 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          131 


CHAPTER    XI. 

PETKR     SHIPS     ON     BOARD    A    PRIVATEER.  —  IS    CARRIED 
TO    HALIFAX. DARTMOOR   PRISON. 

WHEN  letters  of  marque  were  issued  by 
the  authority  of  the  American  Congress, 
and  privateers  were  authorized  to  be  fitted 
out,  many  of  the  seamen  and  fishermen, 
who  were  out  of  employment  in  the  ports 
of  the  Eastern  States,  eagerly  engaged  in 
this  business  and  did  much  to  annoy  the 
commerce  of  England.  The  schooner  War 
ren,  lying  idle  in  Gloucester  harbor,  was 
immediately  fitted  out,  under  the  command 
of  Capt.  Lane,  who  had  been  engaged  in 
the  West  India  trade.  He  was  a  good  sea 
man,  and  the  young  fishermen  were  earnest 
to  enlist  under  his  command.  The  schooner 
carried  two  guns,  and  had  a  crew  of  fifty 
men.  Peter  entered  heartily  into  the  cause 
of  his  country,  and  as  many  of  his  associ- 


132  PETER    GOTT, 

ates  had  enrolled  their  names  among  the 
crew  of  the  Warren,  it  required  but  little 
persuasion  to  induce  him  to  do  the  same. 
This  was  a  sore  trial  to  his  mother,  and  she 
shed  many  tears  in  view  of  the  hardships 
and  danger  to  which  her  son  might  be  ex 
posed.  But  in  those  days  the  women  of 
America  were  not  backward  in  the  cause 
of  their  country,  but  were  ready  to  sacri 
fice  their  own  ease  and  comforts  to  pro 
mote  that  cause  that  was  so  dear  to  their 
husbands  and  sons.  Many  brave-hearted 
mothers  consecrated  their  sons  to  the  ser 
vice  of  their  country.  During  the  darkest 
periods  of  that  long  struggle,  when  many 
prudent  men  became  disheartened  and  de 
sponding,  the  courage  of  the  women  never 
failed.  They  felt  that  their  cause  was  just, 
and  without  entering  into  minute  calcula 
tions,  with  regard  to  the  means  at  their 
disposal,  they  confidently  believed  that  the 
issue  would  be  in  favor  of  the  right. 

When  Peter  had  decided  that  it  was  his 
duty  to  enlist,  his  mother,  although  she  did 
not  actually  give  her  consent,  immediately 


THE    CAPE    ANN    FISHERMAN.          133 

set  about  preparing  his  clothing  for  the 
voyage ;  and  when,  in  a  few  days,  he  left 
her  to  embark  on  board  the  Warren,  which 
was  now  ready  for  sea,  she  gave  him  her 
hearty  blessing. 

Capt.  Lane,  who  had  an  eye  for  a  good 
sailor,  no  sooner  saw  the  clean  and  active 
limbs  of  Peter,  his  intelligent  eye,  and  his 
manly  and  thoughtful  countenance,  than 
he  at  once  set  him  down  for  his  boatswain. 
He  immediately  undertook  the  duties  of 
his  office,  and  the  captain  had  never  occa 
sion  to  regret  his  choice. 

As  the  Warren  left  the  wharf,  she  was 
cheered  by  the  whole  population  of  the 
harbor,  assembled  on  the  shore.  On  the 
fourth  day  out,  they  fell  in  with  an  English 
vessel,  loaded  with  lumber,  bound  from 
Halifax  to  Jamaica.  As  she  had  but  few 
men,  and  was  unarmed,  she  immediately 
surrendered.  They  took  her  crew  on  board 
their  own  vessel,  put  three  men  on  board 
her  and  sent  her  into  port,  where  she  ar 
rived  in  safety. 

They  now  laid  their  course  for  the  West 
12 


134  PETER    GOTT, 

Indies,  hoping  to  fall  in  with  some  English 
merchantman.  In  a  few  days  they  descried 
a  sail,  and  immediately  gave  chase,  with  all 
the  sail  they  could  carry.  But  they  soon 
discovered  that  the  vessel  of  which  they 
were  in  pursuit  was  no  merchantman,  but 
a  British  sloop  of  war,  that  was  now  bear 
ing  down  upon  them.  As  soon  as  this  dis 
covery  was  made,  the  schooner  was  put 
about,  and  all  sail  crowded,  to  escape  the 
enemy.  The  sloop  made  every  effort  to 
come  up  with  her.  But  the  Yankee  showed 
a  clean  pair  of  heels,  and  when  the  sun  rose 
the  next  morning,  her  pursuer  was  nowhere 
to  be  seen. 

In  abput  twenty  days  from  the  time  they 
sailed,  they  were  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Jamaica.  Here  they  cruised  for  two  days, 
when  they  fell  in  with  a  small  brig,  with  a 
cargo  of  sugar,  cofiee,  rum  and  molasses. 
They  ran  across  the  stern  of  the  brig,  and 
demanded  her  surrender;  but,  instead  of 
this,  the  brig  crowded  all  sail,  hoping  to 
escape.  Capt.  Lane  now  sent  a  ball  through 
her  sails,  and  ran  alongside,  witn  the  inten- 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         135 

tion  of  boarding  her.  The  captain  of  the 
brig  finding  that  the  schooner  was  fully 
armed,  and  that  he  had  no  chance  of  es 
cape,  hauled  down  his  flag  and  hove  her 
to.  The  privateer  immediately  took  pos 
session  of  her,  and  removed  her  officers  to 
his  own  vessel.  Upon  looking  at  her  man 
ifest,  Capt.  Lane  found  her  cargo  to  be 
very  valuable,  as  West  India  goods  then 
bore  a  high  price  in  the  American  market. 
He  was  very  desirous  of  getting  her  in 
safely.  So  after  taking  out  a  box  of  sugar, 
a  puncheon  of  rum,  some  bags  of  coffee 
and  two  or  three  barrels  of  molasses,  for 
the  use  of  his  crew,  he  selected  five  of  his 
most  efficient  men  and  three  of  the  brig's 
crew,  and  ordered  her  into  Boston.  Peter 
was  one  of  the  five  men  whom  he  selected 
for  this  hazardous  task. 

On  the  fourth  day  after  they  parted 
company,  the  privateer  fell  in  with  a  ship, 
bound  from  London  to  Jamaica.  Her  crew 
was  well  armed.  But  after  a  conflict,  which 
lasted  about  fifteen  minutes,  during  which 
two  of  the  British  seamen  were  killed,  and 


136  PETER    GOTT, 

the  first  mate  was  wounded,  and  four  of 
the  Americans  were  wounded,  they  suc 
ceeded  in  boarding  and  taking  possession 
of  her.  Capt.  Lane  took  from  the  ship 
the  remainder  of  her  crew,  and  put  his 
maie  and  eight  men  on  board,  and  sailed 
for  home  in  her  company.  In  eighteen 
days  he  moored  his  prize  safely  in  Salem 
harbor.  But  the  'prize  crew,  on  board  the 
brig,  were  not  equally  fortunate.  When 
they  had  arrived  within  two  days'  sail  of 
Boston,  they  were  descried  by  a  British 
sloop  of  war,  and  the  brig  being  a  dull 
sailer,  and  heavily  loaded,  was  soon  cap 
tured.  The  British  captain  placed  the  five 
Americans  in  irons,  and  putting  an  officer 
and  three  men  on  board,  in  addition  to  the 
three  English  sailors  whom  he  found  in 
her,  sent  her  to  Halifax,  where  she  arrived 
in  six  days. 

As  the  brig  did  not  arrive  in  the  United 
States,  it  was  a  long  time  uncertain  whether 
she  had  foundered  at  sea,  or  had  been  re 
captured  by  the  enemy.  It  was  generally 
supposed  that  she  had  been  lost  at  sea,  as 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          137 

there  had  been  a  somewhat  severe  gale 
about  the  time  when  she  must  have  been 
approaching  the  coast.  Of  course,  Patty, 
as  well  as  the  friends  of  the  other  four 
men,  Peter's  companions,  was  greatly  dis 
tressed,  and  held  in  a  state  of  most  anxious 
suspense.  This  state  of  cruel  suspense,  in 
which  the  mind  fluctuates  between  fear 
and  hope,  is  often  worse  than  the  dread 
certainty  of  loss.  It  is  often  surprising, 
with  what  tenacity  the  friends  of  the  lost 
sailor  will  cling  to  the  hope  of  his  return. 
His  vessel  has  been  run  down,  and  he  has 
been  saved  by  leaping  on  board  the  vessel 
which  has  struck  them,  or  he  has  taken  to 
the  boat,  and  been  picked  up  by  some  out 
ward  bound  vessel,  and  will  return  in  her. 
Such  events,  no  doubt,  sometimes  do 
occur.  But  they  are,  "like  angel  visits, 
few  and  far  between."  But  the  bare  pos 
sibility  of  such  an  occurrence  is  sufficient 
to  buoy  up  the  desponding  heart  of  a  be 
reaved  wife  or  mother.  Often  have  I  known 
such  a  wife  or  mother  cling  to  such  a  for 
lorn  hope,  after  all  others  had  arrived  at 
12* 


138  PETER   GOTT, 

the  certain  conviction  that  their  friends 
were  lost. 

Patty  could  not  believe  that  her  beloved 
son,  the  joy  of  her  heart,  was  lost.  She 
chose  to  cherish  the  belief  that  the  brig 
had  been  recaptured.  But  her  heart  was 
heavy  and  her  countenance  sad,  and  night 
after  night  did  she  wet  her  pillow  with 
tears,  as  she  thought  of  the  hardships  he 
was  suffering  as  a  prisoner  in  the  hands  of 
the  enemy.  Still  more  bitterly  did  they 
flow,  when  she  admitted  the  possibility  that 
his  fair  form  was  lying  upon  the  oozy  bed 
of  the  ocean,  or  had  been  a  prey  to  the 
monsters  of  the  deep.  Sorrow  rapidly  per 
formed  the  work  of  time  upon  her  person, 
and  her  hair  became  prematurely  grey. 
But  hope  never  entirely  forsook  the  mo 
ther's  heart.  She  loved  to  talk  of  his  vir 
tues  with  her  children  and  neighbors,  and 
to  tell  of  the  toils  he  had  endured  and  the 
hardships  he  had  undergone,  for  her  sake, 
even  in  the  tender  years  of  his  boyhood. 

She  could  not  give  him  up ;  hope  still  lin 
gered  in  her  heart.  Reports  began  to  be 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          139 

circulated  about  this  time,  respecting  the 
treatment  to  which  American  prisoners 
were  subjected  in  the  prison-ship  at  Halifax. 
It  was  said  they  were  confined  in  the  damp, 
leaky  hulk  of  a  condemned  man  of  war,  and 
that  at  every  rising  tide  they  were  obliged 
to  pump  for  their  lives,  to  keep  down  the 
water,  which  would  otherwise  have  drown 
ed  them, — that  they  were  kept  in  irons, 
and  allowed  barely  food  enough  to  sustain 
life,  and  that,  often  of  so  poor  a  quality  that 
only  starving  men  could  eat  it.  These  re 
ports  brought  little  consolation  to  the  hearts 
of  those  who  believed  their  friends  were  the 
subjects  of  such  treatment.  But  they 
served  to  exasperate  Americans  against  a 
nation  whose  government  could  be  guilty 
of  such  barbarous  conduct.  Alas !  for  the 
unholy  passions  enkindled  by  the  usages 
of  war.  More  than  two  generations  have 
passed  away  since  these  events  occurred, 
but  the  bitter  feelings  which  they  produced 
in  many  hearts,  are  scarcely  yet  forgotten. 
About  two  years  after  Peter  was  taken 
prisoner,  he  succeeded  in  sending  a  letter 


140 


to  his  mother,  acquainting  her  with  the 
circumstances  of  his  capture,  and  the  fact 
that  he  was  still  a  prisoner.  With  a  delicacy 
which  can  exist  only  in  a  loving  heart,  he 
made  no  complaint  of  the  cruelty  to  which 
he  had  been  subjected,  lest  the  details 
should  distress  his  beloved  mother.  But 
he  told  her  not  to  be  discouraged ;  that  he 
should  one  day  be  set  at  liberty,  and  be 
returned  to  his  country  and  his  friends. 
He  stated  that  his  four  companions  were 
alive  and  well.  Oh  !  what  a  thrill  of  joy 
did  this  short  letter  send  through  the  hearts 
of  those  who  had  given  up  their  friends  for 
lost,  and  how  did  it  reward  the  faith  and 
hope  of  Peter's  mother.  It  seemed  that 
her  prayers  were  about  to  be  answered, 
and  her  hopes  realized.  But,  thankful  as 
she  was  that  her  beloved  son  was  alive,  her 
patience  was  to  have  yet  a  longer  trial ; 
her  maternal  anxieties  were  not  yet  ended. 
It  was  soon  reported  that  fever  was  pre 
vailing  among  the  prisoners  at  Halifax,  and 
that  many  of  them  had  fallen  victims  to  it, 
and  then  it  was  reported  that  the  Ameri- 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          141 

can  prisoners  were  to  be  transferred  to 
England,  and  there  be  tried  as  rebels  against 
their  king. 

No  further  news  from  Peter  reached  his 
friends  until  the  expiration  of  another  year, 
when  a  letter,  dated  in  England,  reached 
them,  informing  them  that  the  prisoners 
had  been  removed  from  Halifax  to  Eng 
land,  and  were  now  confined  in  the  prison 
of  Dartmoor.  He  had  been  sick,  very  sick 
of  the  fever,  but  was  now  in  tolerable 
health.  Two  of  the  men  from  Gloucester, 
his  companions,  had  died  of  the  fever,  and 
they  had  all  suffered  severely  from  it.  The 
prison  of  Dartmoor  had  npt  then  the  noto 
riety  which  it  subsequently  attained.  In 
the  war  of  1812,  five  thousand  American 
prisoners  were  at  one  time  confined  there. 
On  one  occasion,  without  any  provocation, 
the  British  soldiers  on  guard  fired  upon  the 
unarmed  prisoners,  and  killed  seven  in  cold 
blood,  and  wounded  several  others.  The 
cruelties  to  which  these  prisoners  were 
subjected  within  its  walls,  have  rendered 
its  very  name  a  disgrace  to  the  British  na- 


142 


PETER   GOTT, 


tion.  This  prison  is  situated  in  the  middle 
of  a  bleak  moor,  upon  a  damp,  marshy  soil, 
without  a  tree  to  shelter  it  from  the  scorch 
ing  sun  in  the  summer  or  to  screen  it  from 
the  piercing  blasts  of  winter.  Its  inmates 
were  lodged  upon  the  damp  ground,  and 
fed  upon  the  coarsest  fare.  Many  strong 
and  vigorous  constitutions  were  broken 
down  by  the  hardships  which  they  here 
suffered.  Jail  or  typhoid  fever  was  almost 
always  present,  owing  to  the  depressing 
circumstances  by  which  the  prisoners  were 
surrounded,  and  at  some  seasons  was  aw 
fully  fatal. 

Peter  had  a  lynd  heart,  and  after  his 
own  recovery,  most  of  his  time  was  em 
ployed  in  nursing  his  sick  associates.  Dur 
ing  his  own  sickness,  he  had  felt  the  want 
of  a  kind  and  sympathizing  friend.  The 
offices  of  such  a  friend  he  now  supplied  to 
many  of  his  countrymen  ;  many  a  young 
man,  attacked  with  disease,  and  with  home 
sickness,  owed  his  recovery  to  his  sympa 
thizing  care,  and  to  his  efforts  to  cheer  his 
spirits  and  to  keep  alive  the  dying  embers 


THE    CAPE    ANN    FISHERMAN.          143 

of  hope.  These  efforts,  no  doubt,  reacted 
favorably  upon  himself.  They  furnished 
employment  to  his  body  and  mind,  and 
served  to  strengthen  his  own  hope  of  final 
deliverance. . 


144 


CHAPTER  XII. 

PETER  RETURNS  HOME.  —  CHANGES  AT  HOME. 

AFTER  Peter  had  been  confined  two  years 
and  a  half  within  the  walls  of  this  prison, 
he  was  returned  to  New  York  on  board  a 
cartel,  which  was  sent  out  by  the  British 
government  to  effect  an  exchange  of  pris 
oners.  He  reached  New  York  in  safety, 
after  a  passage  of  forty  days,  but  so  chang 
ed  in  appearance,  that,  when  he  landed 
upon  the  wharf,  even  the  maternal  instinct 
of  his  own  mother  would  not  have  known 
him.  Here  he  was,  with  the  other  returned 
prisoners,  delivered  to  the  officer  deputed 
by  General  Washington  to  receive  them. 
After  being  comfortably  clothed,  partly  from 
the  government  stores  and  partly  by  the 
charities  of  the  citizens  of  New  York,  and 
remaining  a  day  or  two  to  recruit  their 
wasted  strength,  Peter  and  his  two  com- 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         145 

panions  from  Gloucester  started  on  foot, 
and  travelled  from  New  York  to  Cape 
Ann,  living  upon  the  charity  of  the  inhabi 
tants  by  the  way.  Early  one  morning, 
after  having  walked  during  the  night  from 
Boston,  they  appeared  in  the  midst  of  their 
friends  and  neighbors,  as  men  risen  from 
the  dead*  On  entering  the  village  of 
Gloucester,  they  stepped  into-  a  small  shop, 
which  stood  nearly  opposite  to  where  the 
Gloucester  House  now  stands.  One  of  the 
travellers  was  immediately  re-cognized  by 
the  keeper  of  the  shop,  with  whom  he  had 
formerly  sailed  on  a  trip  to  the  Banks. 

The  news  of  their  arrival  flew  through 
the  village.  On  leaving  the  shop,  they  had 
scarcely  passed  half  the  length  of  the  street, 
before  they  were  surrounded  by  a  crowd 
of  men,  women  and  children,  eager  to  see 
them,  but  many  of  them  doubting  their 
identity.  A  gentleman  by  the  name  of 
Sargent  observing  the  crowd  from  his  win 
dow,  stepped  out  to  inquire  its  cause,  and 
immediately  invited  them  into  his  house, 
and  gave  them  a  warm  and  hearty  "breakfast., 


146  PETER    GOTT, 

The  three  men  belonged  in  different  sec 
tions  of  the  town,  On  leaving  the  house 
of  Mr.  Sargent,  they  separated,  to  find  their 
own  homes.  Peter,  wayworn  and  foot-sore, 
started  for  the  home  of  his  childhood,  on 
the  eastern  declivity  of  Pigeon  Hill.  He 
reached  his  mother's  house  a  little  before 
noon.  The  scene  that  occurred  upon  his 
meeting  his  mother  and  sister,  we  will  not 
attempt  to  describe.  It  may  be  better  im- 
igined  than  described. 

He  found  his  mother  greatly  altered  in 
appearance  during  the  five  years  of  his 
absence.  Sorrow  and  anxiety  had  rendered 
her  countenance  pale,  had  changed  her 
locks  to  grey,  and  planted  wrinkles  in  her 
brow.  But  the  same  loving  and  trusting 
heart  still  throbbed  in  her  bosom.  His 
sister  had  grown  to  be  a  woman.  His  older 
sister  had  married  a  young  man,  who  had 
become  acquainted  with  her  while  living 
at  Capt.  Saunders's,  and  was  living  at  the 
harbor.  His  brother,  who  was  now  an  in 
dustrious  young  man,  was  absent  on  a  fish 
ing  trip.  On  his  labor  his  mother  was  now 
chiefly  dependent  for  support. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         147 

The  appearance  of  the  whole  neighbor 
hood  had  undergone  a  marked  change. 
The  indications  of  thrift,  which  it  presented 
at  the  breaking  out  of  the  war,  were  no 
longer  visible.  The  houses  presented  a 
dilapidated  aspect.  The  shops  and  wharves 
at  the  cove  were  falling  into  decay.  Many 
of  the  most  active  and  efficient  inhabitants 
were  gone.  Many  women,  whom  he  had 
left  happy  wives,  were  now  clothed  in  the 
weeds  of  widowhood.  The  whole  popula 
tion  of  the  town,  and  especially  the  male 
portion  of  it,  was  much  diminished.  It  is 
a  historical  fact,  that  the  number  of  tax 
payers  in  five  years  ending  with  1779,  di 
minished  from  1053  to  696.  This  loss  fell 
chiefly  upon  the  seafaring  population. 
Nearly  every  family  had  been  bereaved  of 
a  husband  or  a  son ;  and  when  the  people 
were  assembled  upon  the  Sabbath,  or  on  any 
public  occasion,  they  appeared  like  a  com 
pany  of  mourners  assembled  for  a  funeral 
service. 

The  fishing  business,  and  especially  the 
Bank  fishing,  which  had  been  the  principal 


148  PETER   GOTT, 

source  of  the  prosperity  of  the  town,  had 
almost  entirely  ceased.  Some  wherries 
and  a  few  sail-boats,  from  ten  to  fifteen 
tons  burden,  were  employed  in  shore  fish 
ing.  At  Gloucester  harbor  the  grass  was 
growing  upon  the  wharves,  and  many  of 
the  larger  class  of  fishing  vessels  were  rot 
ting  at  their  moorings.  This  loss  of  men, 
of  business  and  of  property,  and  the  heavy 
taxes  which  the  survivors  were  called  upon 
to  pay  for  the  support  of  the  army,  was 
their  share  of  the  price  which  our  fathers 
paid  for  our  national  independence.  While 
we  are  enjoying  the  blessings  which  have 
resulted  from  this  independence,  how  little 
do  we  think  of  the  cost  at  which  our 
fathers  purchased  it. 

Peter's  health  had  been  much  impaired, 
and  his  strength  much  exhausted  by  the 
long  confinement  and  the  hardships  which 
he  had  undergone.  But  his  youth  and 
good  constitution,  after  a  few  weeks'  rest, 
restored  him  to  health  and  strength,  so 
that  when  winter  came  on,  he  fitted  up  his 
dory  and  engaged  with  his  brother  in  his 
old  business  of  winter  fishing. 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          149 

In  the  meantime,  soon  after  Peter's  re 
turn,  Cornwallis  surrendered  to  General 
Washington,  and  hostilities  between  the 
colonies  and  the  mother  country  ceased. 
Negotiations  were  entered  into  between 
the  hostile  countries,  and  our  independence 
was  acknowledged. 

Returning  peace  gave  a  new  impulse  to 
business.  American  enterprise  showed  it 
self  in  various  directions.  Notwithstand 
ing  the  currency  was  in  a  very  embarrassed 
condition,  and  the  country  was  staggering 
under  the  burden  of  taxation,  the  energetic 
men  of  New  England  began  to  bestir  them 
selves.  Vessels  that  had  been  lying  for 
years  at  the  wharves,  were  overhauled  and 
repaired  and  refitted,  and  the  flag  of  the 
United  States  began  to  show  itself  in  for 
eign  ports. 

Mr.  Dennis  still  survived,  and  notwith 
standing  all  his  losses,  a  considerable  amount 
of  his  property  remained.  One  of  his  ves 
sels  was  pronounced  seaworthy,  and  he 
purchased  another,  the  property  of  a  man 
who  had  been  killed  on  board  of  a  privateer. 

13* 


150  PETER    GOTT, 

These  were  fitted  for  sea  in  the  best  man 
ner  that  his  means  permitted.  Mr.  Dennis 
now  invited  several  old  fishermen,  who  had 
formerly  been  in  his  employment,  to  en 
gage  again  in  his  service.  Many  lads, 
whose  fathers  had  sailed  in  his  vessels, 
but  who  had  been  lost  in  the  service  of 
their  country,  had  now  grown  up  to  man 
hood.  For  these,  it  was  noticed,  he  ever 
had  a  special  regard.  Several  of  them  were 
shipped  on  board  his  two  vessels.  Mr. 
Dennis  had  no  sooner  commenced  the  work 
of  repairing  these  vessels,  than  he  offered 
the  command  of  one  of  them  to  Peter,  who 
at  once  accepted  it. 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          151 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

PETER  BECOMES  SKIPPER  OF  A  FISHING  VESSEL. — 
LABRADOR  FISHING.  —  CLANNISH  FEELINGS.  —  PETER 
BUILDS  A  HOUSE  AND  MARRIES  A  WIFE. 

PETER  was  a  true  Yankee.  Although 
possessed  of  a  large  share  of  prudence,  he 
was  fond  of  new  enterprises.  So  he  deter 
mined  to  seek  his  fortune  in  a  new  field. 
When  the  vessel  was  ready  for  sea,  he 
laid  his  course  for  the  Bay  of  St.  Lawrence, 
and  entering  to  the  eastward  of  Cape  Bre 
ton,  he  crossed  it  to  the  coast  of  Labra 
dor.  He  had  heard  that  codfish  were 
abundant  along  this  shore.  He  found  the 
report  correct.  The  fish,  though  smaller 
than  the  Bank  fish,  were  very  numerous. 
He  anchored  a  few  miles  from  the  shore, 
and  immediately  commenced  operations, 
and  in  a  few  weeks  had  his  vessel  filled 
with  the  shore  cod.  In  the  meantime,  he 


152 


had  examined  the  shore  for  several  miles, 
in  his  boat,  and  having  selected  a  small 
cove  suited  to  his  purpose,  when  his  vessel 
was  filled  and  the  fish  salted,  he  ran  into 
the  cove  and  anchored  near  the  shore.  A 
part  of  the  crew  were  occupied  in  landing 
the  fish,  and  himself,  with  the  remainder, 
erected  fish-flakes  and  a  hut.  In  a  few 
days  the  fish  were  all  spread,  and  the  pro 
cess  of  drying  was  rapidly  going  on. 

The  weather  on  this  coast  during  the 
short  summers  of  this  climate,  is  delightful. 
The  green  grass  and  the  modest  violets 
spring  up  along  the  edge  of  the  melting 
snow.  Summer  immediately  follows  win 
ter,  and  spring  is  unknown.  So  at  the 
close  of  summer,  winter  immediately  sets 
in,  without  the  intervention  of  autumn. 
From  the  middle  of  May  to  the  middle  of 
September,  the  long  days  push  vegetation 
rapidly  forward,  and  these  rugged  shores 
are  covered  with  the  richest  verdure.  The 
sun  shines  with  such  intensity  that  the  ut 
most  care  is  necessary  in  making  the  fish. 
They  require  to  be  turned  two  or  three 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         153 

times  a  day  ;   but  by  this  process  the  dry 
ing  is  rapidly  accomplished. 

They  had  no  sooner  got  their  fare  upon 
the  flakes,  and  taken  in  a  fresh  supply  of 
water   from   a   sweet   spring   which   they 
found  at  a  short  distance  from  the  shore, 
than  they  put  off  again   to   the   fishing- 
ground,  leaving  one  of  their  most  experi 
enced  men  to  make  and  house  the  fish.     In 
about  three  weeks  they  filled  the  vessel 
again  with  fish,  and  took  them  to  the  shore. 
When  they  had  got  their  flakes  again  filled, 
a  part  of  the  crew  was  occupied  in  tending 
them,  while  the  rest  cleaned  out  the  hold 
arid  prepared  it  for  the  reception  of  the 
dried  fish.     As  soon  as  this  was  done,  they 
began  stowing  the  dry  fish  on  board.     By 
careful  stowage,  two  fares  of  dry  fish  may 
be  stowed  in  the  space  occupied  by  one  of 
fresh  fish.     In  a  few  days  the  work  was  all 
accomplished,  and  the  hold  was  packed  full 
of  dry  fish.     The  oil-butts  and  fishing  gear 
were  secured  upon  the  deck,  and  wood  and 
water  sufficient  for  the  trip  home  was  taken 
on  board. 


154  PETER   GOTT, 

Towards  the  close  of  the  day,  when  the 
dew  began  to  fall  and  the  fish  had  been 
thrown  into  hakes,  the  younger  portion  of 
the  crew  usually  roamed  into  the  surround 
ing  forest  with  their  guns,  or  crawled  along 
the  shore,  concealed  by  the  bushes,  in  pur 
suit  of  the  sea-fowl,  that  abound  at  this 
season  in  these  waters.  Many  a  meal  of 
fresh  game  from  the  woods,  or  of  ducks  and 
brandt,  was  thus  obtained.  When  they 
were  ready  to  sail  for  home,  the  skipper 
and  all  the  crew  spent  one  whole  day  in 
hunting.  During  the  day  they  shot  one 
deer  and  several  small  animals,  and  got 
sadly  frightened  by  a  bear,  which,  after  a 
smart  fight,  finally  escaped  them.  But 
they  returned  to  the  shore  at  night  heavily 
loaded  with  game,  and,  carrying  it  all  on 
board,  prepared  to  sail  with  the  rising  sun 
of  the  next  day. 

They  had  a  pleasant  run  home,  and 
reached  the  Cape  on  the  twentieth  of  Sep 
tember.  On  landing,  and  weighing  off  their 
fare,  it  was  found  to  amount  ito  six  hundred 
and  fifty  quintals.  The  fish  found  a  ready 


THE  CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         155 

market  in  Boston,  but  owing  to  the  depre 
ciated  state  of  the  currency,  a  large  part  of 
the  pay  was  received  in  goods,  which  Mr. 
Dennis,  after  charging  them  with  his  com 
mission  and  the  expense  of  carrying  the 
fish  to  market,  fairly  divided  among  the 
crew. 

Peter,  now  having  the  command  of  a 
vessel,  was  not  disposed  to  lie  idle  ;  so,  fit 
ting  her  out  again,  he  engaged,  about  the 
middle  of  October,  in  the  pollock  fishery. 
In  this  he  had  good  success,  and  hauled  up 
his  schooner  the  last  week  in  November, 
just  in  time  to  celebrate  Thanksgiving  with 
his  mother,  and  brothers  and  sisters.  This 
was  the  first  time  for  seven  years,  that  they 
had  been  together  on  this,  the  annual  festi 
val  of  New  England.  They  talked  of  the 
happy  days  of  former  years,  of  the  separa 
tion  and  trials  and  hardships  they  had 
since  endured,  and  recounted,  with  swelling 
hearts,  the  mercies  they  were  now  enjoy 
ing.  Such  united  sacrifices  upon  the  altar 
of  gratitude  do  good  to  all  hearts.  May 
these  time-honored  gatherings  around  the 


156  PETER   GOTT, 

hearth-stones  of  their  childhood  never  cease 
among  the  sons  of  New  England. 

Peter  spent  the  ensuing  winter  chiefly  at 
home,  making  preparations  for  an  early 
trip  the  ensuing  spring.  During  the  long 
wrinter  evenings,  he  became  acquainted 
with  Mary  Griffin,  the  daughter  of  Capt. 
Griffin,  with  whom  he  sailed  in  the  Polly, 
before  the  breaking  out  of  the  war.  Capt. 
Griffin  had  sailed  from  Gloucester  as  mate 
of  a  privateer,  which  was  never  heard  from 
after  she  sailed,  and  was  believed  to  have 
been  lost  at  sea.  Mary  was  about  twenty 
years  of  age.  The  acquaintance  very  natu 
rally  ripened  into  an  attachment,  the  result 
of  which  was  their  marriage  in  about  two 
years  from  this  time.  Peter's  care  for  his 
mother,  and  the  vicissitudes  and  hardships 
to  which  he  had  been  exposed,  had  pre 
vented  him  from  forming  any  early  attach 
ment,  as  was  then,  and  is  still  common 
among  fishermen.  It  has  ever  been  a  rare 
thing  for  a  young  fisherman  to  go  off  the 
Cape,  or  out  of  the  circle  of  his  acquaint 
ance,  for  a  wife.  Hence  all  old  families  on 


THE   CAPE    ANN    FISHERMAN.          157 

the  Cape  are  connected  by  intermarriages, 
and  have  become,  as  it  were,  one  family. 
This  gives  rise  to  a  feeling  of  union,  to  a 
common  interest  in  each  other's  welfare, 
and  perhaps  to  a  degree  of  clannish  feeling. 
They  live  in  a  little  world  of  their  own. 
For  a  century  past,  it  has  been  a  strange 
thing  for  one  of  their  number  to  go  from 
home,  and  marry  and  settle  in  another 
town.  A  natural  effect  of  this  attachment 
to  their  home  has  been,  that  whatever  pe 
culiarities  there  might  be  in  their  habits  of 
life,  in  their  modes  of  intercourse  with  each 
other,  in  their  language  and  in  their  man 
ners,  has  been  handed  down  from  genera 
tion  to  generation,  and  become  ingrained 
into  their  very  constitutions.  They  feel  a 
degree  of  jealousy  towards  all  strangers 
who  come  among  them,  and  although  they 
exercise  the  virtue  of  hospitality  in  a  high 
degree,  they  continue  to  call  them  stran 
gers,  until  they  have  resided  fifteen  or 
twenty  years  among  them.  Even  after  a 
man  has  been  a  useful  citizen  among  them 
during  this  length  of  time,  if  he  attempt  to 


14 


lr;S  PETER    GOTT, 

take  an  active  part  in  public  affairs,  he 
must  expect  to  be  reminded  by  the  older 
fishermen,  that  he  is  a  stranger  in  their 
midst. 

This  state  of  feeling  is  now  undergoing  a 
change.  The  influx  of  settlers  from  the 
country,  and  especially  from  Nova  Scotia 
and  New  Brunswick,  has  somewhat  enlarg 
ed  their  world.  These  men  are  intermar 
rying  with  the  daughters  of  the  old  fami 
lies  of  fishermen,  and  this  clannish  feeling 
is  dying  out.  But  to  return  from  this  di 
gression.  Peter  was  ready  for  sea  by  the 
first  of  April,  and  sailed  for  the  Banks. 
Here  he  met  with  good  success,  although 
he  and  his  crew  suffered  a  good  deal  from 
the  cold  and  the  snow-storms  which  they 
experienced  during  the  month  of  April. 
But  he  returned  by  the  end  of  June,  with 
a  full  fare.  He  landed  his  fish  with  all  de 
spatch,  and  taking  in  a  full  supply  of  salt, 
sailed  for  the  Bay  of  St.  Lawrence.  Tak 
ing  a  position  near  the  mouth  of  the  Strait 
of  Belle  Isle,  he  commenced  operations.  By 
the  tenth  of  August  he  had  filled  his  vessel, 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          159 

and  taking  possession  of  his  old  flakes,  lie 
refitted  them,  and  landed  his  fish.  By  the 
tenth  of  September,  he  was  ready  to  return 
home  with  a  full  fare  of  dry  fish.  The 
weather  had  now  become  quite  cold,  and 
rain  and  squalls  of  snow  indicated  the  speedy 
approach  of  winter.  He  was  glad  to  leave 
this  inhospitable  shore.  So  taking  on  board 
as  much  wood  as  he  could  conveniently 
carry  on  deck,  he  sailed  for  home,  which 
he  reached  about  the  twenty-fourth  of  the 
month.  Having  spent  a  few  weeks  in  the 
pollock  fishery,  in  October  and  November, 
he  run  his  vessel  round  to  Gloucester  har 
bor,  and  laid  her  up  in  harbor  cove  for  the 
winter. 

This  winter  he  spent  without  labor,  liv 
ing  upon  the  earnings  of  the  summer,  only 
going  out  occasionally,  on  a  pleasant  day, 
in  his  wherry.  He  now  began  to  think  se 
riously  about  getting  ready  for  his  contem 
plated  marriage  with  Mary  Grifiin.  The 
first  step  was  to  build  a  house.  So  during 
the  winter  he  purchased  an  acre  of  land,  at 
a  short  distance  from  his  mother's  house. 


160  PETER   GOTT, 

About  half  of  his  acre  was  occupied  with  a 
ledge  of  granite ;  but  at  one  corner  of  it 
was  a  pleasant  little  sunny  nook,  where  the 
soil  was  good.  Here  he  engaged  a  laborer 
to  dig  him  a  cellar,  16  feet  by  25,  and  stone 
it  up.  He  next  made  a  contract  with  a 
farmer,  who  lived  about  a  mile  north  of  the 
cove,  near  Halibut  Point,  to  cut  and  haul 
the  timber  for  the  frame  of  his  house,  and 
to  cut  the  board  logs  which  he  needed, 
and  haul  them  to  Dennison's  saw-mill  to 
be  sawed.  He  next  contracted  with  a  car 
penter  from  Sandy  Bay,  to  erect  him  a  one 
story  house  during  the  ensuing  season.  It 
was  to  be  completed  by  the  end  of  October. 
In  the  following  spring  he  fitted  out 
again  for  the  Banks,  and  after  having  made 
one  trip,  he  returned  to  his  old  fishing 
ground  on  the  Labrador  coast.  He  had 
been  so  successful  in  his  previous  trips  to 
the  bay,  that  this  year  he  was  accompanied 
by  two  schooners  from  Gloucester  harbor, 
whose  skippers  anchored  in  his  immediate 
vicinity,  and  erected  their  flakes  near  his. 
They  were  successful  in  their  fishing; 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          161 

but  during  the  first  week  in  September 
they  encountered  a  violent  storm,  which 
did  them  considerable  injury,  and  came 
near  driving  them  upon  the  rocks.  Such 
storms  are  of  frequent  occurrence  on  this 
coast,  after  the  first  of  September,  and  ren 
der  fishing  at  this  season  highly  dangerous. 
But  they  repaired  damages  as  well  as  they 
were  able,  and  reached  home  in  safety. 

In  the  latter  part  of  November,  on 
Thanksgiving  week,  Peter  was  married  to 
Mary  Griffin,  and  took  possession  of  his 
new  house,  amidst  the  congratulations  of 
all  their  friends.  He  had  now  a  new  in 
ducement  to  industry  and  enterprise ;  for 
he  had  not  only  his  own  family  to  support, 
but  he  felt  bound  to  render  his  mother  the 
same  assistance  that  he  had  hitherto  done. 
Indeed,  in  about  a  year  from  his  marriage, 
he  took  his  mother  into  his  own  house, 
leaving  the  old  house  to  his  brother,  who 
had  then  taken  to  wife  his  cousin,  Margaret 
Tarr.  She  remained  in  his  family,  the  ob 
ject  of  his  fond  and  filial  regard,  the  re 
mainder  of  her  life.  Her  other  children, 

14* 


162  PETER    GOTT, 

indeed,  and  their  families,  shared  her  care 
and  affection,  but  Peter's  house  was  her 
home.  Peter  now  seemed  settled  for  life, 
and  to  have  found  a  course  of  business  that 
yielded  income  sufficient  to  supply  his 
wants,  and  support  his  family  in  comfort, 
lie  continued  this  course  of  fishing  several 
years,  going  to  the  Banks  once,  and  to  the 
Bay  of  St.  Lawrence  once  in  the  season, 
and  fishing  more  or  less  during  the  winter. 
The  second  year  after  Peter's  marriage? 
Mr.  Dennis  had  a  new  vessel  of  fifty  tons 
built  at  Essex.  Her  whole  cost,  when  fitted 
for  sea,  was  twenty-six  hundred  and  fifty 
dollars.  The  contract  with  the  builder 
was,  that  he  should  receive  one  third  of 
the  pay  upon  delivery,  one  third  in  one 
year,  and  the  remainder  in  two  years.  Of 
this  new  vessel,  Peter  took  one  fourth  and 
became  her  skipper.  He  had  paid  for  his 
house,  and  saved  money  enough  to  pay 
one  third  of  his  portion  of  the  vessel.  This 
new  vessel,  which  he  named  for  his  wife, 
Mary  Gott,  they  fitted  out  for  the  Banks? 
and  continued  to  run  her  to  the  Banks  and 
the  Bav  for  several  years. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         163 

Peter  was  now  in  a  thriving  way.  In 
addition  to  his  share,  as  one  of  the  crew, 
and  his  commission  as  skipper,  he  had  his 
share  of  the  earnings  of  the  vessel.  They 
usually  stocked  from  thirty-five  hundred  to 
four  thousand  dollars  per  year.  One  half 
of  this  belonged  to  the  vessel.  When  their 
stock,  or  the  produce  of  their  year's  work, 
amounted  to  four  thousand  dollars,  two 
thousand  of  it  belonged  to  the  vessel. 
After  deducting  the  cost  of  the  outfit,  in 
surance  and  repairs,  the  remainder  consti 
tuted  the  profit  which  the  vessel  had  made. 
This,  when  the  vessel  met  with  no  extraor 
dinary  injury,  was  from  eight  hundred  to 
a  thousand  dollars  ;  so  that  Peter's  income, 
from  his  fourth  of  his  vessel,  was  from 
two  hundred  to  two  hundred  and  fifty  dol 
lars  per  year.  At  the  end  of  two  years,  he 
had  paid  for  his  fourth  of  the  vessel,  and 
had  accumulated  more  than  two  hundred 
dollars  besides. 

The  next  year  another  new  vessel  was 
added  to  the  fleet.  Of  this,  he  owned  three- 
eighths.  At  the  end  of  two  years  more  he 
had  oaid  for  his  proportion  of  this  vessel. 


104  PET  Eli    UOTT, 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

MACKEREL      FISHERY.  —  PETER'S      ENTERPRISE.  —  BAIT 
MILLS. 

ABOUT  this  time  some  attention  began  to 
be  paid  to  the  mackerel  fishery.  These 
fish  usually  begin  to  appear  in  schools 
along  the  shores  of  Massachusetts  and 
Maine,  in  July.  They  are  then  going  north. 
Their  principal  haunts  are  in  the  Bay  of 
St.  Lawrence,  in  the  Straits  of  Belle  Isle, 
along  the  eastern  coast  of  Labrador,  and  in 
the  Bay  of  Chaleur,  and  around  the  Island 
of  Newfoundland.  They  feed  chiefly  upon 
a  minute  reddish  colored  insect,  that 
abounds  in  these  waters  from  July  to  No 
vember.  When  they  first  come  upon  the 
coast,  they  are  lean  and  tough,  and  of  little 
value ;  but  they  rapidly  accumulate  fat 
when  they  reach  the  waters  in  which  their 
favorite  food  abounds.  By  the  last  of 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          165 

August  they  become  fat  and  tender.  The 
best  mackerel  are  usually  taken  in  October, 
when  the  schools  are  beginning  to  return 
to  the  south. 

The  habits  of  these  fish  are  very  peculiar. 
And  altho.ugh  they  have  been  taken  in  im 
mense  numbers  for  three-quarters  of  a  cen 
tury,  their  habits  are  not  well  understood. 
They  often  move  in  immense  bodies,  ap 
parently  filling  the  ocean  for  miles  in  ex 
tent.  They  are  found  near  the  surface. 
Sometimes  they  will  take  the  hook  with 
the  greatest  eagerness.  At  other  times, 
not  a  mackerel  will  bite  for  days,  although 
millions  of  them  are  visible  in  the  water. 
When  they  are  in  the  mood  for  taking  the 
bait,  ten,  twenty,  and  even  thirty  barrels 
are  taken  by  a  single  vessel  in  a  few  hours. 
They  usually  bite  most  freely  soon  after 
sunrise  in  the  morning,  and  towards  sunset, 
at  evening.  They  all  cease  to  bite  about 
the  same  time,  as  if  they  were  actuated  by 
a  common  impulse.  They  are  easily  fright 
ened,  and  will  then  descend  into  deep  water. 
It  has  often  happened,  that  a  fleet  of  ves- 


166 


PETER    GOTT, 


sels  has  been  lying  off  the  Cape,  a  mile  or 
two  from  the  shore,  in  the  midst  of  a  school 
of  mackerel,  and  taking  them  rapidly  upon 
their  decks,  when  the  firing  of  a  gun  or  the 
blast  of  a  rock  would  send  every  mackerel 
fathoms  deep  into  the  water,  as  suddenly 
as  though  they  had  been  converted  into  so 
many  pigs  of  lead ;  and  perhaps  it  would 
be  some  hours  before  they  would  reappear. 
They  are  caught  most  abundantly  near  the 
shore,  and  very  rarely  out  of  sight  of  land. 
The  commencement  of  the  mackerel  fish 
ery  dates  many  years  back.  But  since  the 
peace  of  1815,  it  has  become  a  business  of 
great  importance  to  Massachusetts,  Maine, 
and  the  British  Provinces.  An  immense 
amount  of  capital,  several  thousand  men, 
and  some  hundreds  of  vessels  are  now  en 
gaged  from  July  to  November  in  this'fish- 
ery.  It  is  much  easier  than  cod  fishing, 
though  perhaps  less  certain  in  its  results. 
"When  fishermen  can  make  as  much  in  a 
few  weeks  at  mackerelling,  as  in  as  many 
months  at  codfishing,  as  is  sometimes  the 
case,  they  prefer  to  run  their  chance  in  the 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         167 

former,  rather  than  to  work  all  the  season 
laboriously  at  the  latter.  But  they  some 
times  fail  of  success  in  the  former,  either 
because  the  mackerel  do  not  appear  in  suf 
ficient  numbers,  or,  if  found,  they  will  not 
take  the  hook.  But  in  the  cod  fishing  they 
more  rarely  fail,  unless  it  be  from  storms 
or  disasters  at  sea.  Mackerelling  is  often 
called  a  lottery.  But  then  there  are  higher 
prizes  in  it  than  in  codfishing,  if  there  are 
more  blanks  ;  so  that  it  has  become  of  late 
the  favorite  branch  of  the  fisheries  among 
the  men  of  the  line. 

Peter  proposed  to  Mr.  Dennis,  that  when 
the  Mary  Gott  returned  from  the  Banks, 
she  should  be  fitted  out  for  the  mackerel 
fishing.  This  was  a  new  business,  and  re 
quired  considerable  preparation.  Barrels 
were  to  be  provided.  A  new  set  of  lines 
and  hooks  were  necessary.  The  deck  must 
be  furnished  with  a  different  set  of  fixtures. 
Mr.  Dennis  was  to  provide  whatever  was 
necessary  for  this  new  business,  and  have 
it  ready  by  the  first  of  July.  Peter  had 
led  the  way  in  the  Labrador  fishing,  and 


168  PETER    GOTT, 

he  was  now  ready  to  commence  the  mack 
erel  fishing,  and  run  the  risk  which  attends 
all  new  enterprizes.  Having  made  all  ne 
cessary  arrangements,  he  set  sail  for  the 
Banks.  He  met  with  his  usual  good  suc 
cess,  and  returned  on  the  fourth  of  July. 

Immediately  after  landing  his  codfish,  he 
took  on  board  two  hundred  barrels  and  his 
mackerel  gear,  and  sailed  for  the  coast  of 
Maine.  Many  of  the  old  fishermen  looked 
upon  it  as  a  wild  enterprize,  and  predicted 
that  he  would  lose  his  labor.  Men  who 
move  in  a  narrow  circle  are  guided  by  ex 
perience  and  rarely  strike  out  new  plans, 
and  are  always  reluctant  to  engage  in  new 
enterprizes.  But  Peter  had  seen  some 
thing  of  the  world,  and  being  a  true  Yan 
kee,  had  some  notions  of  his  own.  Mr. 
Dennis  had  much  confidence  in  his  judg 
ment,  and  although  a  cautious  man,  yet,  as 
he  had  succeeded  so  well  in  his  Labrador 
fishing,  he  was  willing  he  should  make  the 
experiment.  He  laid  his  course  for  Mount 
Desert  Island,  and  lay  for  several  days  in 
the  vicinity  of  the  island.  Soon  signs  of 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          169 

mackerel  began  to  appear.  They  threw 
over  their  baited  hooks,  and  now  and  then 
caught  a  mackerel.  They  continued  in 
this  way  for  several  days,  fishing  through 
the  whole  day,  and  at  the  end  of  a  week 
had  taken  two  barrels  of  poor,  small  fish. 
Some  of  the  crew  were  getting  discouraged, 
when  suddenly,  one  morning,  just  as  the 
sun  was  rising,  they  found  themselves  sur 
rounded  by  mackerel  ready  to  take  the 
hook  the  instant  it  touched  the  water. 
They  would  seize  the  bait,  whether  large 
or  small,  with  the  greatest  avidity.  They 
took  them  on  to  the  deck  with  great  rapid 
ity,  jerking  them  from  the  hook  as  soon  as 
they  were  over  the  rail,  and  dropping  the 
hook  again  instantly  into  the  water.  So 
voracious  were  the  fish,  that  they  would 
oftentimes  seize  the  bare,  unbaited  hook, 
almost  before  it  struck  the  water.  This 
exciting  scene  continued  about  two  hours, 
when,  all  of  a  sudden,  they  ceased  to  bite, 
and  not  another  fish  could  they  induce  to 
take  even  the  best-baited  hook.  Finding 
they  could  catch  no  more,  they  ceased  their 

15 


170  PETER    GOTT, 

labor  and  partook  of  their  breakfast,  which 
the  cook  had  had  ready  for  them  more  than 
an  hour.  After  breakfast,  they  dressed  and 
salted  their  fish,  and  found  they  had  taken 
twenty  barrels  in  two  hours.  After  clean 
ing  the  deck,  they  again  threw  over  their 
hooks,  but  few  mackerel  were  to  be  seen, 
and  of  those  which  they  saw  swimming 
about  the  vessel,  only  now  and  then  one 
would  take  the  hook. 

The  next  morning  the  same  scene  was. 
repeated.  They  turned  out  at  daylight, 
and  chopped  into  small  pieces  with  a  hatch 
et  upon  a  block,  the  smallest  of  the  mack 
erel  which  they  had  caught  the  preceding 
morning,  and  which  they  had  preserved 
in  a  barrel  of  salt  water  for  this  purpose. 
They  thus  prepared  two  or  three  bushels 
of  bait,  that  no  time  might  be  lost  in  pre 
paring  it  after  the  fish  began  to  bite.  Just 
before  sunrise  they  began  their  work,  and 
this  morning  they  took  fifteen  barrels. 
They  could  not  acqount  for  these  singular 
movements  of  the  fish.  But  they  did  not 
forget  them,  and  learned  to  be  always  ready 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHEKMAN.         171 

to  try  their  fortune  with  the  rising  of  the 
sun.  This  accidental  discovery,  that  the 
mackerel  had  a  habit  of  feeding  early  in 
the  morning,  contributed  greatly  to  the 
success  of  their  voyage.  They  were 
greatly  encouraged  by  the  result  which 
they  had  obtained  in  the  two  days.  But 
the  mackerel  had  now  disappeared.  So 
they  hoisted  their  sails,  and  coasted  along 
until  they  came  into  the  bay  of  Castine. 
Here  they  lay  to  among  the  islands,  and  in 
the  course  of  a  week  caught  forty  barrels 
more.  They  found  the  fish  were  growing 
larger  and  fatter,  and  of  course  more  valu 
able.  This  circumstance  also  greatly  en 
couraged  them. 

For  many  years  the  only  method  of  pre 
paring  the  bait  was  that  which  I  have 
mentioned,  viz.,  chopping  it  upon  a  block 
placed  on  deck  for  the  purpose  with  hatch 
ets.  But  some  years  since,  Yankee  inge 
nuity  invented  a  machine  for  this  purpose, 
called  a  bait-mill.  It  consists  of  a  box  of 
plank,  from  the  inside  of  which  project 
short,  stout  knives,  placed  about  an  inch 


172  PETER    GOTT, 

apart.  Within  this  box  a  wooden  cylinder, 
about  five  inches  in  diameter,  is  made  to 
revolve  by  means  of  a  crank.  The  peri 
phery  of  this  cylinder  is  studded  thickly 
with  similar  knives.  Above  this  box  is 
placed  a  kind  of  hopper,  into  which  the  fish 
to  be  cut  are  thrown.  When  they  have 
passed  through  the  mill,  they  fall  upon  the 
deck.  This  mill  greatly  facilitates  the  pre 
paration  of  the  bait. 

Small  mackerel,  ale  wives,  and  a  short, 
broad  fish,  called  hard-heads  or  pohegan, 
are  chiefly  used  for  bait.  This  latter  fish 
is  sometimes  found  in  immense  schools  in 
the  small  bays  and  coves  near  the  shore. 
They  are  taken  in  seines.  Sometimes  two 
or  three  hundred  barrels  are  taken  at  one 
haul.  They  are  prepared  for  use  in  the 
following  way :  They  are  thrown  upon  a 
table.  The  dresser  seizes  one  by  the  head, 
and  with  a  sharp,  thin  knife  shaves  off  a 
thick  slice  from  just  below  the  head  to  the 
tail.  Then  turning  it,  he  shaves  off  a  simi 
lar  slice  from  the  other  side,  leaving  little 
else  than  the  head,  backbone  and  tail.  The 


THE    CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          173 

slices,  or  slivers  as  they  are  called,  are  then 
salted  in  barrels,  and  sold  to  the  mackerel 
catchers.  Before  being  used,  they  are  cut 
into  small  pieces  in  the  bait  mill. 

But  Peter  and  his  crew  had  none  of  these 
conveniences  ;  they  had  to  use  the  mack 
erel  which  they  caught  for  bait.  They 
pursued  their  course  to  the  eastward  until 
they  reached  the  Bay  of  Passamaquoddy. 
Here  they  filled  up  the  remainder  of  their 
two  hundred  barrels,  and  by  the  twentieth 
of  August,  set  sail  for  Cape  Ann.  Here 
they  arrived  and  landed  their  mackerel, 
amidst  the  congratulations  of  their  neigh 
bors,  and  much  to  the  surprise  of  the 
croakers,  who  had  confidently  predicted 
their  failure. 

The  fare  consisted  mostly  of  poor  and 
small  fish,  such  as  would  now  be  reckoned 
No.  2  and  No.  3.  They  were  worth  from 
$3  to  $4.50  per  barrel.  The  last  they  had 
caught  were  quite  fat  and  large ;  and  so 
good  had  been  the  result  of  the  trip,  that 
Peter  was  disposed  to  repeat  it.  He  took 
in  250  barrels,  and  sailed  for  Eastport.  He 

15* 


174  PETER    GOTT, 

continued  in  the  bay  six  weeks,  during 
which  time  he  encountered  a  severe  storm, 
which  made  it  necessary  for  him  to  run 
into  Eastport  river  for  shelter.  He  suffered 
no  material  damage,  and  at  the  end  of  that 
time  he  had  filled  his  250  barrels  with  fat 
mackerel,  with  which  he  reached  home  in 
safety. 

This  time  the  mackerel  were  nearly  all 
No.  1,  and  were  worth  $6.50  per  barrel, 
making  the  whole' fare  worth  about  $1,600. 
The  first  fare  was  worth  $700.  This,  added 
to  the  fare  of  Bank  fish,  which  was  worth 
$1,100,  made  the  year's  stock  $3,400.  This 
was  not  a  great  year's  work ;  but  it  was 
quite  satisfactory,  and  Peter  had  demon 
strated  that  the  mackerel  fishery  was  both 
practicable  and  profitable,  and  he  antici 
pated  that  with  the  experience  he  had 
gained,  the  result  would  be  still  more  satis 
factory  in  time  to  come. 

The  skippers  of  "two  vessels  from  Sandy 
Bay,  resolved  to  try  their  fortune  in  the 
same  business  the  next  season.  Mr.  Den 
nis,  and  the  owners  of  the  two  other  ves- 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         175 

sels,  contracted  with  a  cooper  to  furnish 
them  with  five  hundred  pine  barrels  each, 
by  the  next  July.  This  contract  set  in 
motion  the  music  of  the  cooper's  adze, 
which  continued  to  play  a  brisk  tune 
through  the  livelong  winter  and  the  fol 
lowing  spring. 

When  the  spring  arrived,  Peter  fitted 
out,  as  usual,  for  the  Banks.  And  after  his 
return,  the  three  mackerel  vessels  sailed  in 
company  for  the  Bay  of  Fundy  about  the 
first  of  August,  each  having  300  barrels  on 
board.  About  the  tenth  of  August  they 
commenced  operations  in  the  Bay.  For 
the  first  two  or  three  weeks  they  found  the 
mackerel  rather  small.  But  about  the  first 
of  September,  they  fell  in  with  a  school  of 
fine,  fat  mackerel,  and  by  the  middle  of 
the  month  they  had  filled  all  their  barrels. 
More  than  half  of  their  fares  were  No.  1's, 
and  the  remainder  were  mostly  No.  2's. 
After  landing  their  fares,  they  took  on 
board  two  hundred  barrels  each,  and  fished 
along  the  shores  of  Maine,  without  much 
success  at  first.  At  length,  near  Cape 


176 


Elizabeth,  they  found  plenty  of  fine  mack 
erel,  and  soon  filled  their  barrels.  Vessels 
from  Newburyport  and  Portsmouth  began 
this  season  to  engage  in  the  business,  and 
met  with  encouraging  success. 

This  was  the  best  year's  work  Peter  had 
ever  made.  He  and  Mr.  Dennis  made  ar 
rangements  to  have  all  their  craft  engage 
in  the  mackerel  business  the  following  year. 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.         177 


CHAPTER    XV. 

SMUGGLING.  —  TREATIES.  —  REVENUE   CUTTERS. 

DURING  the  winter,  Peter  purchased  a 
fourth  of  another  schooner.  He  was  now 
part  owner  of  three  vessels.  Of  one  of 
these,  his  brother  now  took  command.  The 
next  season,  quite  a  little  fleet  fitted  out 
for  the  mackerel  fishery,  and  sailed  for  the 
Bay  of  Chaleur.  They  frequently  landed 
on  the  coast  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  purchased 
wood  and  potatoes,  and  milk  and  eggs,  and 
poultry  of  the  inhabitants.  For  these  pur 
chases,  they  usually  paid  out  of  the  stores 
of  the  vessels,  giving  tea,  coffee,  sugar,  flour, 
or  shoes,  in  return  for  what  they  received. 
This  was  a  profitable  trade  for  both  parties, 
— the  Americans  obtaining  wood  and  pota 
toes  much  cheaper  than  they  could  get 
them  at  home,  and  the  British  people  get- 


178  PETER   GOTT, 

ting  tea  and  sugar  at  about  half  what  they 
paid  for  them  to  British  merchants.  This 
was  especially  true  with  respect  to  tea. 

The  East  India  Company,  as  is  well 
known,  has  enjoyed  a  monopoly  of  the 
trade  in  tea  for  many  years,  so  that  all  the 
tea  drank  by  the  .subjects  of  the  British 
crown,  in  Europe  and  America,  had  to  pass 
through  its  warehouses,  and  pay  to  it  a 
large  profit.  Until  within  a  short  time 
past,  there  has  been  no  exemption  from 
this  rule.  But  the  Americans,  bringing 
their  tea  directly  from  China,  without  the 
intervention  of  a  monopoly,  are  able  to  sell 
it  at  a  much  lower  rate.  The  fishermen 
were  not  slow  to  learn  that  teas,  and  certain 
manufactured  articles,  in  demand  among 
the  people  of  the  Provinces,  would  pay  a 
good  profit.  Hence  arose  a  petty  trade 
in  smuggled  goods,  in  which  the  fishing 
vessels  often  took  a  part.  The  inhabitants 
of  the  British  shores  encouraged  this  trade, 
much  to  the  annoyance  of  the  merchants 
at  Halifax  and  St.  Johns.  Self  interest  led 
these  merchants  to  exert  themselves  to  pre- 


THE    CAPE    ANN    FISHERMAN.          179 

vent,  by  treaty  stipulations,  the  American 
fishermen  from  frequenting  the  coasts  of 
the  Provinces.  A  few  years  after,  when 
they  themselves  had  become  engaged  in 
the  mackerel  fishery,  they  induced  the 
British  ministers  to  put  such  a  construction 
upon  the  treaties  that  had  been  made,  as 
should  prohibit  fishermen  from  the  States 
to  fish  within  three  miles  from  any  of  their 
shores.  As  the  mackerel  abound  most  near 
the  shore,  and  within  the  line  of  three 
miles,  this  prohibition  has  been  a  source  of 
great  vexation,  and  of  much  ill  blood  be 
tween  the  American  fishermen  and  the 
people  of  the  Provinces.  For  many  years 
past,  individuals  from  Nova  Scotia  have 
been  in  the  habit  of  shipping  on  board 
American  fishing  vessels,  during  the  fishing 
season,  and  returning  home  during  the 
winter.  These  people,  knowing  the  value 
of  American  goods,  and  the  wants  of  their 
neighbors  and  friends,  and  being  well  ac 
quainted  with  all  the  bays  and  inlets  of  the 
coast,  have  been  the  most  active  in  carry 
ing  on  the  smuggling  trade,  while  by  Brit- 


180  PETER   GOTT, 

ish  merchants,  it  has  all  been  charged  upon 
American  fishermen.  These  last,  knowing 
the  charge  to  be  unjust,  and  at  the  same 
time  finding  themselves,  on  account  of  it, 
cut  off  from  the  best  fishing  grounds,  have 
submitted  to  the  prohibition  with  much  re 
luctance,  and  no  doubt  often  caught  mack 
erel  within  the  prohibited  line. 

After  the  mackerel  fishery  had  greatly 
increased,  and  become  a  business  of  much 
importance  to  the  British  colonies,  that 
government  annually  sent  several  armed 
revenue  cutters  on  to  the  coast  during  the 
autumn,  to  keep  off  American  fishermen. 
When  the  fleet  was  numerous,  the  fisher 
men  would  often  combine  together,  and 
defy  the  cutters ;  and  they  seldom  attempt 
ed  to  capture  a  fishing  vessel  under  such 
circumstances,  even  if  they  were  within  the 
forbidden  limit.  But  when  the  captains  of 
the  cutters  were  disappointed  of  their  prey, 
and  irritated  by  the  daring  conduct  of  the 
Yankees,  woe  be  to  any  solitary  vessel  that 
might  be  found  straggling  out  of  sight  of 
the  fleet.  It  was  immediately  seized  as 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         181 

lawful  prey,  even  though  five  or  six  miles 
from  the  shore.  When  such  vessels  were 
not  taken  in  the  act  of  violating  the  treaty, 
the  captain  of  the  cutter  would  swear  that 
they  had  done  so  at  some  former  time,  or 
that  he  had  good  reason  to  believe  that 
they  intended  to  do  so,  on  some  future  oc 
casion  ;  and  upon  the  ground  of  this  oath, 
the  court  at  Halifax  issued  a  libel  against 
the  vessel.  The  case  then,  after  due  delay, 
was  examined  by  the  proper  authorities. 
If  any  defence  was  attempted,  the  British 
lawyers  and  courts  were  sure  to  make  the 
costs  equal  to  the  value  of  the  vessel  and 
cargo,  even  if  she  got  clear,  which  was  sel 
dom  the  case.  The  Yankees  soon  learned 
a  more  economical  way  of  managing  the 
business.  They  allowed  their  vessels  to  be 
condemned,  without  defence,  in  all  cases ; 
and  when  they  were  sold  at  auction,  they 
bid  them  off,  and  drawing  an  order  on  some 
mercantile  house  in  Boston,  took  possession 
of  them,  and  sailed  for  home. 

Many  hair-breadth  escapes  and  stirring 
adventures  occurred  during  the  period  in 

16 


182  PETER   GOTT, 

which  this  annoying  state  of  things  contin 
ued.  Sometimes  a  clipper-built  fisherman 
would  lead  the  cutter  a  long  chase  along 
shore,  and  run  among  shoals  and  islands  for 
the  sake  of  leading  her  pursuer  into  dan 
ger.  Sometimes  she  would  run  out  of  some 
cove  or  harbor  under  the  very  guns  of  the 
cutter,  the  men  all  lying  upon  deck,  and 
receiving  her  fire.  And  sometimes,  when 
there  was  plenty  of  sea-room,  two  or  three 
fishermen  would  attempt  to  run  into  the 
cutter.  Such  daring  on  the  part  of  the  fish 
ermen  taught  the  cutters  caution  in  their 
attacks  upon  them,  and  compelled  them  to 
wink  at  many  open  acts  of  violation  of  the 
law.  But  they  were  sure  to  take  their  re 
venge  when  they  could  do  it  without  dan 
ger  to  themselves.  Many  a  skipper  and 
crew,  that  had  carefully  conformed  to  the 
requirements  of  the  law,  confiding  in  their 
innocence,  were  taken  and  carried  into 
Halifax,  and  condemned  upon  the  oath  of 
the  captain  of  the  cutter,  in  revenge  for  the 
bold  and  daring  course  of  others,  who  were 
guilty. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          183 

This  was  a  great  source  of  annoyance  to 
the  owners  and  crews,  and  led  them  con 
stantly  to  petition  the  government  for 
redress.  The  freedom  of  the  fisheries  in 
British  waters  was  one  of  the  subjects  of 
negotiation  between  this  country  and  Great 
Britain  for  many  years.  But  those  to  whom 
the  construction  of  treaties  was  entrusted, 
could  not  be  made  to  understand  the  nature 
and  importance  of  the  subject.  Something 
was  attempted  to  be  done  by  the  Ashbur- 
ton  treaty,  which  was  negotiated  by  Mr. 
Webster  and  Lord  Ashburton.  But  the 
provision  in  this  treaty  respecting  the  fish 
eries,  was  the  least  satisfactory  part  of  the 
treaty,  and  did  not  meet  the  difficulties  of 
the  case ;  and  nothing  effectual  was  done 
for  the  relief  of  the  fishermen  until  the 
reciprocity  treaty  of  1854,  when  the  privi 
leges  which  they  had  formerly  enjoyed 
were  again  restored  to  them. 

Peter  Gott,  and  the  vessels  in  which  he 
was  concerned,  engaged  in  a  small  way  in 
this  traffic  with  the  inhabitants,  without  the 
least  intention  of  injuring  any  one,  or  vio- 


184  PETER    GOTT, 

lating  any  international  law.  It  was  mere 
ly  a  matter  of  mutual  accommodation.  But 
both  parties  finding  it  a  profitable  business, 
it  insensibly  increased.  The  inhabitants  in- 
several  places  depended  upon  the  fisher 
men  to  bring  them  an  annual  supply  of 
certain  goods,  and  contracted  with  them 
for  a  certain  amount ;  and  the  fishermen  in 
their  turn  agreed  to  receive  certain  articles 
of  produce  at  a  fixed  price  in  return.  The 
amount  of  these  articles  was  soon  greater 
than  was  wanted  for  the  consumption  of 
the  vessels.  At  first,  the  excess  was  shared 
by  the  skipper  and  crews,  and  consumed  in 
their  families.  Soon,  however,  it  was  re 
ceived  by  the  owners  as  a  part  of  the  re 
turns  of  the  voyage,  and  sold  for  the  benefit 
of  all  concerned.  Mr.  Dennis  and  Peter 
found  it  quite  convenient,  when  they  were 
fitting  out  their  vessels  in  July,  to  put  on 
board  a  good  assortment  of  thick  shoes, 
teas,  coffee  and  hard  soap,  and  a  few  other 
articles  that  found  a  ready  sale.  These 
were  exchanged  for  butter,  eggs,  oats,  and 
peltries.  This  barter  trade  sometimes  add- 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         185 

ed   two  or  three  hundred  dollars  to  the 
profit  of  the  trip. 

Another  trade  soon  grew  out  of  this, 
which  Peter  was  not  slow  to  take  advan 
tage  of.  The  mackerel  fishery  required  a 
considerable  outlay  of  capital.  The  vessels 
employed  in  it,  at  the  period  of  which  we 
are  speaking,  were  wrorth  from  fifteen  to 
twenty-four  hundred  dollars  each,  when 
fitted  for  sea.  From  six  to  eight  hands 
were  employed  on  board.  Much  time  was 
consumed  in  sailing  to  and  from  the  fishing 
grounds,  and  often  a  great  deal  of  time  was 
wasted  in  searching  for  fish,  or  in  waiting 
for  their  arrival  on  the  coast.  We  have 
already  remarked,  that  these  fish  are  found 
in  the  greatest  abundance  within  a  line  of 
three  miles  from  the  shore.  Now  it  must 
be  obvious,  that  the  inhabitants  of  the  coasts 
frequented  by  them,  can  take  them  at  much 
less  cost  of  time  and  money,  than  those 
who  go  from  the  ports  of  Massachusetts. 
Eight  men,  in  four  boats,  worth  ten  or 
twelve  dollars  each,  with  no  outfit  but  their 
lines  and  hooks  and  reels,  can  row  out  from 

16* 


186  PETER    GOTT, 

their  own  homes,  when  the  fish  are  on  the 
coast,  and  take  as  many  mackerel  in  a  day, 
as  the  same  number  of  men  on  the  deck 
of  a  fishing  vessel  that  is  worth  two  thou 
sand  dollars,  and  has  sailed  fifteen  hundred 
miles  to  reach  the  ground.  Barrels  and 
salt  are  worth  no  more  in  the  Provinces 
than  in  the  States.  Hence  the  people  upon 
the  coast  could  afford  to  sell  the  mackerel 
which  they  caught,  at  a  much  lower  rate 
than  the  Yankee  fishermen ;  and  they  were 
the  more  ready  to  do  this,  as  they  had  but 
few  facilities  for  getting  them  to  a  market, 
and  were  compelled  to  take  such  prices  as 
the  Halifax  traders  were  pleased  to  give 
them.  If  they  received  half  what  the  fish 
were  worth  in  Boston,  they  made  a  greater 
profit  upon  them  than  did  the  Ameri 
can  fishermen.  When,  by  the  Ashburton 
treaty,  the  inhabitants  of  the  Provinces 
were  allowed  to  export  mackerel  to  the 
States,  upon  paying  one  dollar  and  a  hah0 
duty,  per  barrel,  they  sent  them  in  great 
quantities,  and  were  even  then  able  to 
undersell  the  American  fishermen  to  such 
degree  as  almost  to  ruin  their  business. 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          187 

Peter  Gott  was  the  first  to  perceive  that 
it  would  be  a  good  operation,  both  for  him 
and  the  people  on  the  coast,  to  employ 
them  to  fish  for  him,  or  to  purchase  of  them 
mackerel  already  caught  and  packed,  es 
pecially  if  he  could  pay  for  them  in  Amer 
ican  goods.  In  this  way,  he  was  able  to 
fill  his  vessel  in  a  few  days,  and  thus  make 
three  or  four  trips  in  a  season,  instead  of 
two.  But  the  Halifax  traders,  who  fre 
quented  the  small  ports,  to  purchase  the 
mackerel  caught  by  the  inhabitants,  soon 
got  wind  of  his  doings.  As  his  traffic  inter 
fered  with  theirs,  they  used  strenuous  exer 
tions  to  break  it  up.  And  as  he  paid  for 
the  fish  which  he  purchased,  in  whole  or  in 
part,  by  prohibited  goods,  they  had  some 
ground  for  complaint,  notwithstanding  the 
trade  was  beneficial  to  the  people.  Mer 
chants  have  a  sharp  eye  for  their  own  in 
terests,  and  are  always  ready  to  make  a 
great  noise  about  national  rights,  and  the 
violations  of  treaties,  and  the  laws  of  trade, 
when  their  own  profits  are  injurously  affect- 
ed.  The  convenience  and  the  advantage 


188  PETER   GOTT, 

of  the  people  are  of  small  consideration, 
when  compared  with  their  own.  The  loss 
of  profit  by  the  Halifax  traders  has  been, 
in  fact,  the  great  source  of  all  the  troubles 
and  difficulties  which  the  fishermen  have 
had  to  encounter  during  many  years  on 
che  eastern  coast.  It  was  this  that  led  to 
the  new  and  more  stringent  construction 
of  treaties,  and  which  subjected  the  British 
government  to  the  expense  of  sending  rev 
enue  cutters  on  to  the  coast  during  the 
fishing  season,  and  which  caused  so  much 
tedious  and  unprofitable  negotiation  be 
tween  the  two  nations.  But,  in  the  mean 
time,  Peter  and  Mr.  Dennis  managed  to 
make  a  considerable  sum  out  of  this  business. 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          189 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

PETER   THINKS    OF    QUITTING   FISHING.  —  GOES  ONE  TRIP 
MORE.  —  A   TERRIBLE   STORM. 

PETEK  GOTT  now  began  to  be  considered 
by  his  neighbors  as  a  wealthy  man.  He 
was  known  over  the  whole  Cape,  as  a  man 
of  enterprize  and  integrity  ;  and  as  he  had 
been  successful  in  all  his  enterprizes,  his 
judgment  was  much  depended  upon,  and 
he  was  often  consulted  by  all  who  were 
engaged  in  the  various  branches  of  fishing. 
He  wras  now  part  owner  of  six  vessels.  He 
had  a  thriving  family,  and  occupied  one  of 
the  best  houses  in  the  village  of  Pigeon 
Cove,  which  had  much  increased  during  the 
five  past  years.  He  began  to  think  seri 
ously  of  quitting  the  fishing  himself,  and 
commencing  business  on  shore.  His  wife 
and  mother  were,  of  course,  disposed  to 
encourage  this  project,  as  it  would  keep 


190  PETER   GOTT, 

him  at  home,  and  he  would  no  longer  be 
exposed  to  the  perils  of  the  ocean.  On 
proposing  the  subject  to  his  old  friend  and 
early  patron,  Mr.  Dennis,  he  found  that  he 
had  a  plan  in  view  which  he  thought  would 
meet  the  wishes  of  Peter,  and  would  be  of 
mutual  advantage  to  them  both.  Mr.  Den 
nis  was  beginning  to  feel  the  infirmities  of 
age.  He  had  accumulated  considerable 
capital,  and  he  had  entire  confidence  in 
Peter's  honesty  and  capacity.  His  plan 
was,  that  at  the  close  of  the  ensuing  season, 
Peter  should  go  into  partnership  with  him 
self  upon  equal  shares.  This  plan  was  im 
mediately  agreed  upon,  to  the  satisfaction 
of  all  parties,  and,  at  once,  they  set  about 
preparing  the  outfit  for  the  ensuing  season. 
Peter  went  to  Boston,  under  a  commission 
from  Mr.  Dennis,  and  purchased  a  good 
supply  of  such  articles  as  he  deemed  best 
suited  for  the  trade  upon  the  coast.  The 
vessels  were  all  fitted  out  early  in  the 
spring,  a  part  of  them  for  coast  fishing,  and 
the  largest  of  them  for  the  Banks.  This 
spring  they  were  not  very  successful.  The 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         191 

vessels  at  the  Banks  encountered  a  severe 
storm,  One  of  them  lost  two  cables  and 
anchors,  and  had  her  boat  stove,  and  was 
obliged  to  return  home  with  but  two  thou 
sand  fish  ;  another  carried  away  her  main 
sail,  and  a  third  sprung  her  foremast  and 
had  her  bulwarks  stove  in.  Several  ves 
sels  from  Marblehead  and  other  places  were 
severely  injured  in  this  storm.  Several 
men  were  lost  from  the  fleet,  and  one  ves 
sel  from  Beverly  was  never  afterwards 
heard  from,  and  was  supposed  to  have  sunk 
at  her  anchor. 

The  vessels  from  Pigeon  Cove  all  reach 
ed  home  about  the  first  of  July,  and  re 
paired  damages  as  speedily  as  possible. 
The  losses  which  they  had  sustained  were 
nearly  equal  to  the  value  of  all  the  fish 
they  had  taken,  so  that  they  had  to  depend 
for  the  profits  of  the  year  upon  the  catch 
of  mackerel  during  the  remainder  of  the 
season.  The  Mary  Gott  rode  out  the  storm 
with  but  slight  damage ;  but  one  of  her 
men  was  swept  from  her  deck  by  a  sea  that 
struck  her  broadside.  Peter  himself  came 


192  PETER    GOTT, 

near  sharing  the  same  fate.  He  fortunate 
ly  caught  the  leeward  mainstay,  and  hung 
over  the  side  of  the  vessel,  clinging  to  the 
stay  until  the  sea  had  gone  by,  when  he 
threw  himself  on  deck.  The  danger  to 
which  he  was  thus  exposed,  made  a  deep 
impression  upon  his  mind.  While  he  hung 
suspended  over  the  side  of  the  vessel,  the 
scenes  of  his  past  life  were  all  present  to 
his  mind.  His  venerable  mother,  his  be 
loved  wife  and  children  stood  before  him ; 
and  notwithstanding  all  the  dangers  he  had 
previously  passed  through,  he  never  thought 
himself  so  near  to  eternity  as  he  did  at  that 
moment.  When  he  was  safe  on  deck,  his 
heart  swelled  with  gratitude  for  his  deliv 
erance.  The  impression  made  upon  him 
at  that  time  was  never  forgotten,  but  con 
tributed  to  the  development  of  those  seeds 
of  piety  which  his  mother's  instruction  had 
early  implanted  within  him.  The  danger 
which  he  thus  escaped  afforded  an  addi 
tional  reason  for  quitting  the  line,  and  en 
gaging  in  business  on  shore. 

In  a  few  days,  the  damages  were  all  re- 


THE   CAPE    ANN    FISHERMAN.          193 

paired,  the  outfits  were  received  on  board, 
and  the  whole  fleet  was  ready  for  sea. 
Damage  to  the  sails  and  rigging  of  fishing 
vessels  is  soon  repaired.  The  fishermen 
can  all  work  as  riggers,  upon  an  emergency. 
They  can  bend  a  sail  and  set  a  stay  nearly 
as  well  as  professed  risers,  and  many  of 
them  can  use  carpenters'  tools  in  a  work 
manlike  manner. 

Peter  now  took  leave  of  his  wife  and 
children,  and  went  on  board  his  schooner 
for  his  last  fishing  trip.  On  the  twentieth 
of  July  the  fleet  set  sail  for  the  Bay  of  St. 
Lawrence.  They  agreed  to  rendezvous  at 
Prince  Edward's  Island.  On  their  arrival 
at  the  Gut  of  Canso,  they  found  that  some 
fifty  vessels  from  Massachusetts  and  Ports 
mouth  had  passed  through  before  them. 
They  had  fine  weather  while  on  the  pas 
sage,  but  they  did  not  find  the  mackerel 
abundant.  They  run  about  among  the 
islands,  catching  a  few  mackerel  daily,  and 
occasionally  touching  into  some  bay  or 
cove,  and  trading  with  the  inhabitants. 
During  the  month  of  August  they  caught 


17 


194  PETER    GOTT, 

but  few  fish.  But  the  mackerel  were  daily 
growing  fatter  and  better.  Early  in  Sep 
tember,  they  found  the  mackerel  more 
abundant,  and  by  the  tenth  of  the  month 
most  of  the  vessels  had  taken  from  seventy 
to  a  hundred  barrels. 

The  weather  was  now  getting  cold ;  the 
nights  were  frosty.  Storms  in  this  north 
ern  latitude  are  of  frequent  occurrence  at 
this  season,  and  are  often  accompanied  by 
squalls  of  snow.  At  the  time  of  the  Sep 
tember  equinox,  severe  storms  usually 
occur  in  the  bay.  The  eleventh  was  a 
still,  mild  day.  There  was  a  slight  haze  in 
the  atmosphere,  just  sufficient  to  produce 
that  quivering  shimmer  upon  the  surface 
of  the  water,  that  is  often  seen  upon  the 
land  in  the  quiet  days  of  October,  when 
the  cattle  are  drowsily  chewing  the  cud, 
and  nature,  having  perfected  the  growth  of 
vegetation,  is  waiting  the  ripening  of  the 
golden  corn,  and  enjoying  a  Sabbath  rest. 
The  wind  was  in  the  east,  but  was  scarcely 
sufficient  to  produce  the  slightest  ripple 
upon  the  water.  In  the  afternoon  a  gentle 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         195 

swell  began  to  be  noticed  now  and  then, 
which  gradually  increased  as  the  day  wore 
on.  At  length  a  sound,  like  a  distant  groan, 
was  heard  at  first,  so  low  as  scarcely  to  be 
noticed  by  those  who  did  not  know  what 
it  indicated.  Soon  it  resembled  a  growl 
rather  than  a  groan,  and  seemed  to  be  ut 
tered  in  an  angry  tone.  The  older  skippers 
were  at  once  aware  that  a  storm  was 
approaching.  They  had  taken  mackerel 
freely  through  the  day,  and  to  the  inexpe 
rienced  there  appeared  no  danger.  But 
about  three  o'clock,  Peter  ordered  his  crew 
to  reel  up  their  lines  and  dress  off  the  fish 
upon  deck,  and  make  all  snug  as  fast  as  pos 
sible.  By  four  this  was  accomplished,  when 
he  immediately  hoisted  sail  and  shaped  his 
course  for  Eichmond  harbor,  which  was 
about  eight  miles  distant  to  the  south-west. 
Soon  after  he  was  under  way,  he  noticed 
five  or  six  other  vessels  running  up  their 
sails.  Their  skippers  had  noticed  the  indi 
cations  of  the  weather,  and  prepared  to 
seek  shelter  from  the  coming  storm.  Most 
of  the  fleet,  however,  seemed  wholly  uncon- 


196  PETER   GOTT, 

scious  that  any  change  was  approaching, 
and  remained  on  the  fishing  ground,  won 
dering  at  the  movements  of  those  who  were 
leaving  the  fleet.  These  last  moved  slowly 
through  the  water,  there  being  only  now 
and  then  a  puff  of  wind  sufficient  to  fill 
their  sails.  But  the  swell  increased ;  and 
the  unearthly  sounds,  that  came  booming 
over  the  water,  became  more  and  more 
distinct.  Towards  night  a  thick,  dark  line 
of  haze  appeared  in  the  east,  and  the  air 
became  damp  and  chilly.  The  wind  grad 
ually  increased,  and  soon  after  the  sun  had 
disappeared,  dark,  broken  masses  of  clouds 
began  to  be  seen  in  the  south-west.  Soon 
after  night-fall,  Peter  and  those  who  had 
left  the  fishing  ground  with  him,  reached 
the  little  port  of  Richmond,  and  succeeded 
in  getting  within  the  line  of  breakers,  and 
anchored  their  schooners,  and  reefed  their 
sails,  and  barred  down  their  hatches,  and 
made  all  as  secure  as  possible.  The  wind 
now  rapidly  increased,  and  the  darkness 
became  very  dense,  and  those  who  were  on 
deck  noticed  now  and  then  a  drop  of  frozen 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          197 

rain,  or  a  flake  of  snow.  There  was  then 
no  light  house  on  the  island,  and  it  was 
very  difficult  for  even  those  who  were  well 
acquainted  with  the  channel,  to  run  into 
the  harbor  in  the  night.  They  felt  great 
anxiety  for  those  whom  they  had  left  in 
-the  bay,  many  of  whom  were  wholly  unac 
quainted  with  the  shores  of  the  island,  and 
with  the  channel  which  led  into  the  harbor. 
Soon  after  Peter  and  his  companions  had 
left  the  fishing  ground,  the  remainder  of 
the  fleet  became  aware  of  the  cause  which 
induced  him  to  leave  it.  They  saw  the  in 
dications  of  the  coming  storm.  Several  o 
them  attempted  to  follow  him;  but  the 
darkness  thickened  around  them,  and  the 
violent  gusts  of  wind  rendered  it  almost 
impossible  for  them  to  carry  sufficient  sail 
to  keep  their  vessels  on  their  course,  and 
they  were  tacking  and  beating  about  the 
bay  for  several  hours,  uncertain  of  their 
course  and  in  great  anxiety.  At  length 
they  approached  the  line  of  breakers.  The 
roaring  and  rushing  of  the  waters,  as  they 
broke  upon  the  reef,  and  were  thrown  up 

17* 


198  PETER   GOTT, 

in  a  dense  mass  of  white  foam,  first  showed 
them  their  position,  and,  at  the  same  time, 
but  too  plainly  warned  them  of  their  dan 
ger.  They  attempted  to  haul  off  from  the 
shore,  and  get  an  offing  in  the  bay ;  but, 
at  every  tack,  they  found  themselves  nearer 
to  the  foaming  rocks.  Two  of  the  vessels, 
after  encountering  the  greatest  hazard,  ran 
along  by  the  edge  of  the  sounding  reef,  at 
the  imminent  risk,  every  moment,  of  being 
swept  on  to  it,  and  found  the  opening  that 
led  within  it,  and  shot  through  it,  and  came 
to  an  anchor  near  the  Mary  Gott.  Three 
of  the  vessels  finding  themselves  near  the 
edge  of  the  reef,  dropped  their  anchors  and  • 
attempted*  to  hold  on  till  the  daylight 
should  enable  them  to  find  the  channel. 
They  took  in  all  their  canvas,  and  payed  out 
all  their  cable,  and  for  a  time  had  strong 
hopes  that  they  should  hold  on ;  but  towards 
morning  the  wind  increased  in  violence, 
and  the  snow  and  rain  drove  into  their 
faces  with  the  greatest  fury.  One  of  them 
parted  her  cables  anjd  drove  into  the  midst 
of  the  breakers.  The  other  two  dragged 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         199 

their  anchors  until  the  stern  of  one  of  them 
was  in  the  edge  of  the  foam,  when  her  an 
chor  again  held.  The  other,  as  she  entered 
the  boiling  cauldron,  parted  her  second 
cable  and  plunged  into  the  foaming  waves, 
and  drove  clear  over  the  reef  into  the  com 
paratively  smooth  water  on  the  inside. 
The  one  that  first  drove  upon  the  breakers, 
struck  upon  a  rock  and  lay  rolling  and 
beating  through  the  night, — the  crew  ex 
pecting  every  moment  she  would  go  to 
pieces.  Finding  she  held  together,  they 
cut  away  her  masts,  and  commenced  throw 
ing  over  their  mackerel.  This  was  a  work 
of  great  difficulty,  owing  to  the  fury  of  the 
storm  and  the  violent  motion  of  the  vessel ; 
but  before  morning  they  had  thrown  over 
seventy  barrels  of  mackerel  and  all  their 
salt.  At  length  a  wave  lifted  her  from  the 
rock  on  which  she  had  been  fastened,  and 
she  suddenly  drove  through  the  boiling 
waters  to  the  inside  of  the  reef,  much  to 
the  astonishment  of  the  crew  and  of  all 
who  had  beheld  her  in  her  perilous  and 
hopeless  situation.  Being  without  an  an- 


200 

chor,  the  crew  were  unable  to  bring  her 
up,  and  she  soon  drifted  on  to  the  beach ; 
and  the  men,  to  their  great  relief,  reached 
the  shore  in  safety,  though  greatly  ex 
hausted  by  labor,  anxiety  and  exposure  to 
the  cold  storm. 

The  storm  continued  three  days,  the  wind 
blowing  most  of  the  time  with  great  fury. 
Sometimes  they  were  drenched  with  tor 
rents  of  rain  ;  sometimes  the  air  was  filled 
with  sleet  and  snow,  so  that  it  was  scarcely 
possible  to  see  the  length  of  the  deck.  The 
eight  vessels  at  anchor  in  Richmond  Bay, 
rode  out  the  storm  in  safety ;  but  the  re 
mainder  of  the  fleet  which  Peter  left  on 
the  fishing  ground,  when  he  ran  for  this 
port,  did  not  all  escape  so  well.  Most  of 
them  ran  for  Souris,  a  little  port  near  the 
other  end  of  Prince  Edward's  Island.  A 
rocky  headland  juts  out  from  the  shore, 
and  forms  one  side  of  the  little  harbor. 
Under  shelter  of  this,  the  anchorage  ground 
is  good.  Fishing  vessels  often  take  refuge 
in  this  place  when  the  wind  is  east.  Sev 
eral  of  the  fleet  reached  this  shelter  during 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         201 

the  night.  Three  or  four  were  unable  to 
find  it  in  the  darkness ;  and  after  driving 
about  the  bay  most  of  the  night,  went 
ashore  to  the'  northward  of  Souris.  As  it 
was  light  before  they  went  ashore,  the  men 
all  succeeded  in  escaping  to  land.  When 
one  of  the  vessels  struck,  her  mainmast 
was  thrown  out  of  her,  and  fell  with  the 
head  to  the  land,  and  thus  formed  a  bridge, 
by  which  the  crew  reached  the  rocks. 
These  men  thus  fortunately  thrown  upon 
the  shore,  succeeded  in  hauling  a  line  from 
one  of  the  other  vessels,  which  drove  broad 
side  on  to  the  shore,  and  made  it  fast  to  a 
rock,  by  means  of  which  its  crew  reached  the 
shore.  One  of  the  vessels,  when  within  two 
hundred  feet  of  the  shore,  struck  broadside 
upon  a  rock,  which  stove  a  hole  in  her  side 
and  held  her  fast.  She  heeled  towards 
the  shore,  and  the  sea  made  a  clean  breach 
over  her.  The  men  were  in  the  most  im 
minent  danger,  expecting  the  vessel  would 
instantly  break  up  and  go  to  pieces.  The 
deck  was  swept  clean  of  every  movable 
thing,  and  it  was  with  the  utmost  difficulty 


202  PETER   GOTT, 

that  the  men  could  hold  on  by  the  stays 
and  rigging.  At  length  one  of  them  got 
three  cod  lines  and  tied  them  together,  and 
tied  a  fish  lead  to  one  end,  then  coiling  the 
line,  he  attempted  to  throw  the  lead  on 
shore,  but,  after  repeated  attempts,  he  failed. 
Necessity  is  said  to  be  the  mother  of  inven 
tion.  It  often  leads  men  to  think  of  means 
of  relief,  that  they  do  not  think  of  when 
not  under  its  stimulating  influence.  One 
of  the  crew,  when  all  were  ready  to  give 
up  in  despair,  happened  to  think  of  a  wooden 
bottle  in  the  cabin,  containing  West  India 
rum,  and  although  the  cabin  was  nearly 
filled  with  water,  he  contrived  to  get  hold 
of  the  bottle,  and  brought  it  on  deck. 
Then  taking  a  hearty  draught  from  it,  he 
poured  out  the  remainder,  and  making  a 
loop  around  the  bottle,  with  the  bite  of  a 
fish  line,  he  threw  it  overboard,  holding  on 
to  the  other  end  of  the  line.  Finding  that 
the  waves  carried  it  towards  the  shore,  he 
tied  on  another  line,  and  payed  out  his 
line,  carefully  watching  his  bottle  as  it  was 
tossed  about  by  the  dashing  waves.  The 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         203 

undertow  would  sometimes  draw  it  back 
nearly  to  the  vessel,  when  it  had  almost 
reached  the  shore.  One  of  the  men  on 
shore,  who  wrere  anxiously  watching  their 
proceedings,  perceived  the  floating  object 
in  the  water,  and  as  the  men  on  board 
were  eagerly  pointing  towards  it,  he  was 
at  once  aware  of  its  purpose.  He  immedi 
ately  cut  a  small  sapling  with  his  knife, 
and  wading  into  the  water  to  his  waist, 
after  many  attempts,  entangled  his  pole  in 
the  line  that  was  attached  to  the  wooden 
bottle.  The  men  on  shore  now  shouted 
encouragement  to  those  on  board.  The 
man  who  had  bethought  himself  of  this 
messenger  to  carry  a  line  ashore,  now  cut 
away  the  fore  sheet,  and  drawing  it  through 
the  block,  attached  one  end  of  it  to  the 
line  which  he  had  made  fast  to  his  wrist. 
Then,  with  the  assistance  of  the  skipper, 
who  was  holding  on  to  the  windward  main 
stay,  he  cut  away  the  main  sheet,  and  fast 
ening  the  ends  of  the  two  sheets  together, 
made  signs  for  those  who  held  the  bottle 
end  of  the  line,  to  draw  it  in.  They  drew 


204  PETER    GOTT, 

it  in  carefully,  but  when  drawn  to  its  ut 
most  length,  the  doubled  sheet  was  found 
to  reach  but  little  more  than  half  way  to 
the  shore.  There  was  no  more  rope  on 
board  within  reach  of  the  benumbed  and 
exhausted  men,  by  which  they  could 
lengthen  their  line. 

At  length,  one  of  the  men  on  shore  be 
thought  him  of  the  line  by  which  he  had 
been  saved,  and  taking  one  of  his  shipmates 
with  him,  he  ran  to  the  spot  where  the 
wreck  of  his  vessel  lay,  and  leaping  upon 
the  rock  to  which  the  line  was  fastened,  he 
seized  the  line  and  passed  along  it  into  the 
boiling  surge,  hand  over  hand,  until  he 
reached  the  side  of  the  vessel  to  which  it 
was  attached ;  then,  drawing  his  knife,  he 
cut  the  line  at  a  blow,  and  fell  with  it  into 
the  water.  His  shipmate  on  the  rock,  the 
moment  he  saw  him  fall,  drew  in  the  line, 
and  soon  they  were  both  standing  safe  upon 
the  rock.  They  now  cast  off  the  line  from 
the  rock,  and,  leaping  on  shore,  carried  it 
as  fast  as  they  were  able  to  the  spot  where 
the  men  were  now  all  assembled,  holding 


THE   CAPE    ANN    FISHERMAN.          205 

on  to  the  fish  line  which  had  been  brought 
ashore  by  the  bottle.  The  question  now 
was,  how  this  line  should  be  attached  to 
the  end  of  the  sheet,  which  lay  upon  the 
water  about  half  way  between  the  vessel 
and  the  shore.  The  wooden  bottle  was 
again  put  in  requisition,  and  made  to  serve 
another  good  turn.  A  running  noose  was 
made  in  the  end  of  the  line  which  the  men 
had  brought  from  the  other  vessel.  To 
this  noose  the  wooden  bottle  was  attached 
by  a  small  piece  of  the  fish  line,  and  the 
noose  was  passed  on  to  the  fish  line,  and 
the  bottle  thrown  into  the  water.  Soon 
the  undertow  taking  it,  drew  it  out  toward 
the  vessel,  which  still  held  together.  The 
noose  ran  along  the  line,  drawn  by  the 
bottle,  in  the  same  way  that  a  messenger 
runs  up  the  line  of  a  boy's  kite.  In  a  short 
time  it  worked  along  the  line  until  it  passed 
over  the  loop  by  which  the  end  of  the  sheet 
had  been  made  fast  to  the  fish  line.  After 
it  had  passed  some  way  on  to  the  sheet,  the 
man  who  held  it  on  shore  began  to  draw 
upon  the  line,  and  soon  he  perceived  that 

18 


206  PETER    GOTT, 

the  noose  was  tightening  upon  the  line,  and 
in  a  few  moments  he  had  the  satisfaction  to 
find  that  it  grasped  the  sheet  firmly  just 
beyond  the  loop.  And  now  the  men  on 
shore  shouted  to  those  on  board  to  take 
courage.  The  poor  fellows  were  exhaust- 
ed  with  fatigue  and  excitement,  and  be 
numbed  with  the  cold.  The  cold  rain  and 
snow  and  sleet  had  been  driving  full  in 
their  faces  for  some  hours.  They  had  been 
holding  on  to  the  rigging,  constantly 
drenched  with  the  cold  spray,  and  every 
few  minutes  a  wave  breaking  over  them. 
But  when  they  saw  that  there  was  now 
some  chance  of  their  escape,  and  that  a 
way  had  been  prepared  for  their  rescue, 
they  took  courage  and  made  every  exer 
tion  to  avail  themselves  of  the  means  that 
had  been  provided  for  them.  Bailey,  the 
man  who  had  first  sent  the  bottle  ashore 
with  the  fish  line,  now  seized  the  line,  and 
let  himself  down  into  the  water.  He  soon 
succeeded  in  warping  himself  ashore.  The 
line  being  buried  several  feet  under  water 
most  of  the  time,  and  the  surf  beating  with 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         207 

great  fury,  this  is  a  work  of  much  greater 
difficulty  than  one  would  imagine  who  has 
never  seen  it  performed.  It  requires  much 
presence  of  mind,  and  a  great  deal  of  mus 
cular  strength.  When  a  man  is  caught  by 
the  undertow,  he  is  very  liable  to  be  torn 
from  his  hold  on  the  line.  When  the  line 
is  buried  deep  by  a  wave,  he  may  be 
drowned,  holding  on  to  the  line,  before  the 
wave  runs  by,  or  he  may  be  struck  by  some 
floating  body  in  the  water.  All  these  diffi 
culties  are  much  increased,  when  his  hands 
are  benumbed  and  his  limbs  stiffened  by 
the  cold.  Bailey  had  exerted  himself  so 
much  on  board,  that  he  had  retained  the 
full  use  of  his  hands  and  rapidly  reached 
the  shore.  One  of  the  men  on  shore  wad 
ed  into  the  water  to  meet  him,  and  seized 
him  by  the  collar  as  soon  as  he  came  with 
in  reach,  and  assisted  him  to  land,  where 
he  was  received  with  a  shout.  The  skipper 
next  followed  his  example.  When  he  had 
passed  about  half  way,  a  tremendous  wave 
came  over  him,  submerging  him  many  feet 
deep.  Finding  himself  about  to  suffocate, 


208  PETER    GOTT. 

he  let  go  his  hold  of  the  line,  and  rose  to 
the  surface  to  get  breath  ;  but  fortunately, 
when  the  undertow  took  him  down  again, 
it  brought  him  in  contact  with  the  line, 
which  he  instinctively  caught,  and  again 
pushed  for  the  shore.  This  time  he  came 
so  near  to  the  shore  that  his  feet  found  the 
bottom,  where  he  stood  holding  on  to  the 
line  until  the  next  wave  had  broken,  when 
he  was  soon  helped  to  land.  One  after 
another,  the  crew  let  themselves  down  upon 
the  line ;  and,  after  encountering  many 
hazards,  they  all  reached  the  shore,  except 
one  poor  fellow,  who  had  lashed  himself  to 
the  main  stay,  and  his  hands  had  become 
so  benumbed  with  the  cold  that  he  could 
not  untie  the  cord  that  bound  him.  After 
shouting  and  beckoning  to  him  some  time, 
and  finding  that  he  remained  in  the  same 
position,  the  men  on  shore  believing  him 
to  be  dead  or  disabled,  the  skipper,  who 
first  landed,  volunteered  to  go  to  his  rescue. 
This  feat  he  accomplished  at  the  imminent 
risk  of  his  life,  for  when  he  had  reached  the 
side  of  the  vessel,  a  heavy  wave  broke  over 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         209 

it,  lifting  it  from  its  bed  and  rolling  it  on 
to  its  beam,  crushing  another  large  hole  in 
its  side.  This  movement  of  the  vessel  let 
him  fall  into  the  water,  and  it  was  by 
means  of  the  utmost  exertion .  that  he 
avoided  being  drawn  under  the  vessel. 
But  holding  on  to  the  line  with  a  death- 
grasp,  he  soon  brought  himself  to  the  sur 
face,  and  drew  himself  to  the  rail,  which 
was  now  under  water.  Then,  raising  him 
self  over  the  rail,  he  caught  a  cleat  near  the 
foot  of  the  mainmast,  which  was  used  in 
tautening  the  main  sheet.  Drawing  him-, 
self  up  by  this,  he  got  his  foot  against  the 
mast,  and,  springing  upward,  he  seized  the 
main  stay,  to  which  the  poor  benumbed  lad 
hung  suspended  by  a  cord  around  his  waist. 
Instantly  drawing  his  knife,  he  cut  the  lash 
ing  that  held  him,  and  let  him  fall  to  the 
lower  edge  of  the  deck.  Then  letting  him 
self  down  after  him,  he  seized  him,  and 
grasping  the  collar  of  his  jacket  with  his 
left  hand,  and  boldly  plunging  into  the  icy 
water,  seized  the  line  with  his  right. 

The  man  whom  he  had  thus  far  rescued, 

18* 


210  PETER   GOTT 


1  3 


was  able  to  make  but  little  effort,  and  his 
strength. seemed  every  moment  failing,  and 
it  was  with  great  difficulty  that  he  could 
keep  his  head  out  of  water  sufficiently  to 
prevent  his  drowning.  But  he  struggled 
on  bravely,  throwing  himself  forward  as  far 
as  he  was  able  with  one  hand,  then  watch 
ing  his  opportunity,  he  would  let  go  his 
hold,  and  reaching  forward  seize  the  line 
again,  drawing  after  him  the  helpless  sea 
man.  In  this  way  he  slowly  worked  his 
way  towards  the  shore.  Several  of  the 
men  were  upon  the  point  of  going  to  his 
assistance,  but  they  feared  the  line  would 
part  by  their  additional  weight ;  indeed, 
they  greatly  feared  that  it  would  be  parted 
by  the  weight  of  the  two  men  that  were 
now  supported  by  it ;  and  stood  in  almost 
breathless  suspense,  watching  the  move 
ments  of  the  two  men  as  they  were  thrown 
about  by  the  foaming  waves.  When  they 
had  passed  that  part  of  the  line  where  the 
noose  that  was  run  out  from  the  shore 
grasped  the  loop  of  the  sheet,  the  inner  end 
of  the  line  being  the  strongest,  and  having 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         211 

no  fear  that  that  portion  of  it  would  part, 
one  of  the  men  slipping  rapidly  out  upon 
the  line,  soon  came  to  the  skipper,  and  giv 
ing  him  an  encouraging  word,  passed  be 
yond  him  until  he  came  to  the  noose  ;  then 
holding  on  to  the  inner  portion  of  the  line, 
he  cut  the  noose  with  his  knife.  The  men 
on  shore  being  prepared  for  this,  imme 
diately  drew  in  the  line  with  the  three  men, 
and  lifted  them  on  to  hard  land.  The  skip 
per  was  completely  exhausted  and  unable 
to  stand,  and  it  was  with  great  difficulty 
that  they  loosed  the  iron  grip  of  his  hand 
from  the  collar  of  the  now  dying  sailor,  the 
muscles  of  his  arm  and  hand  had  become  so 
rigid  and  unyielding  from  violent  contrac 
tion  and  the  cold.  Some  of  the  men  ap 
plied  themselves  to  the  relief  of  the  man 
who  had  thus  been  brought  on  shore  by 
the  bold  and  heroic  effort  of  the  skipper ; 
but  in  a  few  moments  after  he  was  laid  on 
the  shore  he  breathed  his  last,  completely 
overcome  by  the  cold  and  exposure. 
Others  removed  the  brave  skipper  under 


212  PETER    GOTT, 

the  shelter  of  a  projecting  rock,  and  rub 
bed  his  hands  and  arms,  and  rendered  him 
all  the  assistance  in  their  power  under  the 
circumstances.  He  soon  recovered  ability 
to  stand  and  walk,  and  in  a  few  hours  was 
entirely  restored. 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         213 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

» 

KINDNESS  OF  THE  PEOPLE  OF  PRINCE  EDWARD'S  ISLAND. 
—  THE  STORM  CEASES.  —  THEY  REPAIR  DAMAGES,  AS 
FAR  AS  THEY  CAN,  AND  RETURN  HOME.  —  THE  LOSS 
OF  A  YEAR'S  WORK. 

BEFORE  the  events  of  which  we  have  been 
speaking  had  transpired,  several  of  the  in 
habitants  of  the  island  had  collected  at  the 
scene  of  the  disaster.  They  were  very  kind 
to  the  shipwrecked  fishermen.,  and  offered 
them  all  the  assistance  in  their  power. 
The  people  of  this  island,  and  those  who 
inhabit  the  coasts  of  the  Provinces,  are  in 
general  very  hospitable  and  kind  to  those 
who  are  thrown  upon  their  shores,  reliev 
ing  their  immediate  wants  to  the  extent  of 
their  means.  They  led  the  dripping  and 
half  frozen  men  to  their  houses,  which  were 
situated  at  the  distance  of  half  a  mile. 
They  kindled  large  fires,  and  arranged  them 


214  PETER   GOTT, 

around  them,  and  the  women  soon  cooked 
them  some  warm  food,  and  did  all  in  their 
power  to  make  them  comfortable.  They 
partook  of  their  hospitality  with  thankful 
ness,  and  after  they  had  got  warmed,  and 
partially  dried,  their  hosts  led  them  to  the 
village  of  Souris,  about  four  miles  distant, 
although  the  storm  was  beating  with  piti 
less  fury.  They  were  desirous  of  reaching 
this  place  before  dark,  hoping  to  be  able  to 
communicate  with  their  friends  who  had 
reached  that  port.  Before  starting  for 
Souris,  they  engaged  two  of  the  islanders 
to  bring,  upon  a  handbarrow,  the  dead 
body  of  their  lost  shipmate  to  one  of  the 
houses,  where  it  could  be  kept  in  safety  till 
the  storm  was  over.  They  reached  Souris 
about  dark,  wet  and  weary,  and  as  it  was 
impossible  for  them  to  go  on  board  of  the 
vessels  of  their  comrades  in  the  harbor, 
even  if  the  danger  to  which  these  were 
exposed  had  not  been  such  as  to  forbid  it, 
they  were  kindly  received  by  the  villagers, 
who  distributed  them  in  their  families,  and 
provided  them  fire  and  food. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         215 

These  people,  most  of  whom  are  engaged 
in  fishing  or  coasting,  are  exposed  to  great 
danger  in  navigating  their  rockbound  and 
stormy  shores,  and  can  fully  sympathize 
with  the  sailor  in  distress.  Our  fishermen 
have  often  been  indebted  to  their  kindness 
and  hospitality.  A  large  number  of  the 
fleet  had  reached  this  port,  and  through 
the  day  had  rode  in  safety  under  the  pro 
tection  of  the  jutting  headland,  and  their 
crews  were  indulging  the  hope  that  they 
should  ride  out  the  storm,  although  it  beat 
upon  them  with  great  violence.  But  after 
nightfall,  the  wind  increased  to  a  perfect 
hurricane,  and  lashed  the  waves  into  a  mass 
of  foam.  About  midnight  the  wind  hauled 
two  or  three  points  more  to  the  north,  and 
the  headland  now  no  longer  afforded  them 
protection  against  the  rushing  waves.  Soon 
one  of  the  vessels  began  to  drag  her  anchor, 
and  drifted  against  another  that  was  an 
chored  a  short  distance  to  the  leeward, 
causing  her  to  part  her  cable,  and  now  the 
two  drifted  foul  of  a  third.  They  lay  some 
time  pounding  and  beating  against  each 


216  PETER    GOTT, 

other,  and  at  length  drifted  all  together 
upon  the  beach. 

This  was  about  daylight.  The  men  were 
all  so  fortunate  as  to  reach  the  shore  in 
safety.  Before  morning,  most  of  the  fleet 
had  drifted  from  their  holding  ground,  and 
were  in  imminent  hazard  of  going  on  to 
the  rocks.  Some  of  them  cut  away  their 
masts,  and  paying  out  all  their  cable,  were 
enabled  to  hold  on.  In  the  course  of  the 
day,  six  more  of  them  went  on  shore,  two 
of  which  beat  to  pieces  upon  the  rocks. 
The  four  others  falling  upon  the  beach, 
held  together,  and  were  ultimately  got  off. 

The  storm  continued  with  great  violence 
through  the  day,  the  wind  varying  from 
east  to  north-east.  The  inhabitants,  shel 
tered  by  the  rocks  and  buildings  on  the 
shore,  watched  the  vessels  and  their  move 
ments  with  the  deepest  anxiety,  expecting 
them  all  to  go  on  shore.  About  noon,  the 
master  of  the  schooner  Atalantis,  from  New- 
buryport,  finding  that  his  vessel  was  going 
adrift,  and  would  soon  be  upon  the  rocks, 
hoisted  a  double  reefed  foresail  and  the 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         217 

peak  of  his  jib,  and  cut  away  his  anchor, 
and  beat  out  of  the  harbor  in  the  face  of 
the  storm,  greatly  to  the  surprise  and  as 
tonishment  of  the  inhabitants.  This  was 
the  first  time  that  this  feat  was  ever  at 
tempted  in  this  harbor  in  a  storm.  But  he 
accomplished  it  safely,  and  obtained  a  suffi 
cient  offing  to  enable  him  to  put  to  sea ; 
and  although  his  bulwarks  were  torn  away 
and  his  sails  badly  split,  he  reached  home 
in  safety. 

Towards  night  the  wind  hauled  to  the 
north-west,  and  a  gleam  of  light  in  the  west, 
at  sunset,  indicated  that  the  storm  was  over. 
The  wind,  after  its  change,  continued  to 
blow  with  great  strength  through  the  night, 
and  the  weather  was  intensely  cold ;  but 
no  more  vessels  went  ashore.  In  the  morn 
ing  the  sun  shone  out  bright  and  clear. 
The  day  was  cold ;  but  the  men  from  the 
vessels  that  still  rode  in  the  bay,  came  on 
shore  to  refresh  themselves,  and  were  kindly 
entertained  by  the  people  of  Souris.  They 
now  set  about  repairing  damages,  as  far  as 
they  were  able. 

19 


218  .       PETER    GOTT, 

The  vessels  that  went  ashore  to  the 
northward  of  the  harbor  were  entirely  lost. 
Some  sails  and  rigging,  a  few  fish  lines, 
some  articles  of  clothing,  and  a  few  barrels 
of  mackerel,  were  all  that  was  saved  from 
them.  The  three  vessels  that  first  went 
ashore  in  the  harbor,  were  so  badly  injured 
that  they  could  not  be  repaired.  Their 
crews,  with  the  help  of  those  who  had  lost 
their  vessels,  got  out  the  mackerel,  and  de 
posited  it  on  shore,  and  stripped  the  ves 
sels  of  their  sails  and  rigging.  The  vessels 
which  had  cut  away  their  masts,  needed 
the  masts  to  replace  those  which  they  had 
lost.  When  the  storm  had  ceased,  and  the 
swell  of  the  ocean  had  subsided,  they  man 
aged  to  take  out  these  masts.  And  placing 
a  dismasted  vessel  between  two  others, 
whose  masts  were  standing,  and  rigging 
a  derrick  upon  her  deck,  they  hoisted  out 
the  stumps  of  the  cut  masts,  and  passing 
a  strap  around  the  middle  of  one  of  the 
foremasts,  which  had  been  taken  from  the 
vessels  on  shore,  and  which  had  been  floated 
alongside,  they  weighed  it  on  board  and 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         219 

soon  stepped  it  into  its  place  in  the  keel 
son.  Repeating  the  same  operation  with 
the  mainmast,  they  soon  had  two  masts 
standing,  which,  if  a  size  too  small,  or  too 
large,  yet  answered  the  purpose  very  well, 
and  enabled  them  to  reach  their  home. 
Three  vessels  were  thus  fitted  with  masts 
in  a  short  time.  The  stays  were  set  up 
and  the  sails  bent,  and  they  were  ready 
for  sea. 

Four  of  the  nine  vessels  that  went  ashore 
at  Souris,  were  got  off,  after  taking  out 
their  mackerel  and  salt.  They  were  more 
or  less  damaged,  and  considerable  time  was 
required  to  repair  them,  so  as  to  fit  them 
for  the  voyage  home.  Peter  Gott,  and  the 
vessels  that  got  into  the  harbor  of  Rich 
mond,  rode  out  the  storm  without  material 
damage.  As  soon  as  the  weather  would 
permit,  they  took  out  the  cargo  of  the  ves 
sel  that  had  gone  upon  the  beach,  and  fit 
ting  some  skids  under  her  bottom,  they 
threw  her  upon  her  side  and  launched  her 
into  her  proper  element.  Finding  her  hull 
tight,  they  took  the  cargo  again  on  board, 


220  PETER   GOTT, 

and  overhauled  her  rigging,  and  soon  had 
her  ready  for  sea,  though  with  only  a  small 
anchor,  which  was  lent  her  by  one  of  the 
other  vessels  which  had  it  on  board  as  a  su 
pernumerary.  In  the  meantime,  they  had 
sent  one  of  the  skippers  across  the  island 
to  Souris,  and  learned  the  fate  of  the  ves 
sels  that  had  put  into  that  port.  Several 
of  these  had  been  badly  injured,  and  as  the 
season  was  getting  late,  and  they  were 
likely  to  encounter  more  bad  weather,  it 
was  not  thought  best  for  them  to  engage 
again  in  fishing. 

They,  therefore,  agreed  to  put  the  mack 
erel  and  sails  and  rigging  which  had  been 
saved  from  the  wrecked  vessels,  on  board 
of  these,  and  despatch  them  to  their  re 
spective  ports.  Some  ten  days  had  now 
been  consumed  by  the  storm  and  the  re 
fitting  of  the  vessels,  and  they  were  rap 
idly  approaching  the  end  of  September. 
But  those  whose  vessels  were  still  seawor 
thy,  determined  to  make  an  effort  to  fill 
them  up.  Peter  Gott  was  the  more  desirous 
of  doing  this,  as  two  of  the  vessels  lost  at 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         221 

Souris  belonged  to  him  and  Mr.  Dennis, 
and  they  were  but  partially  insured.  As 
soon  as  he  had  come  to  this  decision,  he  got 
under  way,  and  was  followed  by  six  other 
vessels  from  Richmond  harbor. 

The  nights  were  now  cold  and  frosty, 
and  Kersey  jackets  and  woollen  mittens 
were  in  demand.  They  found  that  since 
the  storm,  the  body  of  the  mackerel  had 
moved  to  the  northward,  and  they  followed 
them  across  the  bay,  taking  a  few  barrels 
daily.  They  were  now  large  and  fat,  one 
barrel  being  worth  two  barrels  of  those 
which  they  caught  when  they  first  came 
into  the  bay.  They  continued  beating 
about,  and  fishing  when  the  weather  would 
permit,  for  eight  days,  and  had  taken  from 
forty  to  fifty  barrels  each,  when  perceiving 
indications  of  another  storm,  they  hoisted 
all  sail  and  ran  through  the  Gut  of  Canso 
and  made  for  Liverpool,  which  they  reached, 
and  got  into  a  safe  harbor  just  as  the  storm 
broke  upon  them.  They  lay  here  until  the 
third  day,  when  the  weather  clearing  up, 
they  made  all  sail  for  home,  which  they 

19* 


222  PETER    GOTT, 

reached  about  the  middle  of  October.  The 
vessels  which  they  had  despatched  from 
Souris  reached  home  a  few  days  before 
them,  and  reported  the  sad  disaster  which 
they  had  met  with.  The  Atalantis  reached 
Newburyport  on  the  fifth  of  October,  and 
reported  all  the  vessels  at  Souris  lost.  This 
report  had  reached  Cape  Ann,  and  pro 
duced  the  most  intense  anxiety  among  the 
people,  especially  the  friends  of  all  the 
crews  that  had  sailed  from  the  Cape. 
About  the  tenth,  the  vessels  that  had  es 
caped  at  Souris  arrived,  and  reported  the 
true  state  of  things,  and  relieved  the  good 
people  of  their  worst  fears.  They  reported 
the  men  from  the  Cape  all  safe.  The  relief 
thus  afforded  them  from  a  state  of  most 
distressing  suspense  was  almost  indescriba 
ble.  They  congratulated  each  other  upon 
the  good  news,  and  rejoiced  with  the  most 
heartfelt  gratitude  that  the  lives  of  their 
friends  had  been  so  wonderfully  preserved 
in  the  midst  of  the  most  appalling  dangers. 
On  the  next  day,  which  was  the  Sabbath, 
all  the  clergymen  on  the  Cape  offered  up 


THE    CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          223 

the  most  sincere  thanksgivings  for  the  pre 
servation  of  the  crews,  and  the  most  earn 
est  petitions  for  their  safe  restoration  to 
their  families  and  friends ;  and  when,  on 
the  fifteenth,  Peter  arrived  at  Pigeon  Cove, 
he  was  received  with  open  arms,  almost  as 
one  from  the  dead.  In  the  course  of  three 
or  four  days  the  vessels  all  arrived  and 
landed  their  fares. 

This  storm  was  the  most  disastrous  which 
had  occurred  since  the  mackerel  fishing 
had  been  commenced  by  the  fishermen  of 
Cape  Ann.  There  was  but  little  loss  of 
life  indeed.  In  this  respect  they  were 
wonderfully  favored.  But  the  loss  of  pro 
perty  was  great.  Eleven  vessels  were 
wholly  lost,  and  many  others  seriously 
damaged,  and  the  whole  fleet  was  prevent 
ed  by  it  from  obtaining  full  fares.  In  the 
early  part  of  the  year  the  fishing  had  not 
been  as  successful  as  usual ;  but  few  of  the 
vessels  had  made  enough  to  pay  for  re 
pairs  and  outfits,  and  the  owners  were 
depending  mainly  upon  the  results  of  this 
trip  for  the  profits  of  the  year  and  for  the 


224  PETER    GOTT, 

means  of  meeting  the  payments  becoming 
due  for  the  vessels  which  they  had  previ 
ously  purchased. 

The  winter  was  fast  approaching,  and  a 
large  number  of  the  families  of  the  fisher 
men  had  already  taken  up  all  the  wages 
which  they  had  earned,  and  some  of  them 
had  much  overdrawn  their  credit.  Fisher 
men  are  generally  improvident,  and  have 
nothing  laid  up  in  store  for  the  future. 
They  depend  for  a  livelihood  upon  the  la 
bors  of  the  present  year ;  when  these  labors 
are  unsuccessful,  they  and  their  families 
are  destitute  of  their  usual  comforts,  unless 
they  can  get  credit  with  their  employers. 
But  this  year  most  of  the  employers,  owing 
to  the  losses  which  they  had  made,  and  the 
want  of  the  profit  which  they  had  not  made, 
were  unable  to  give  the  needed  credit.  In 
this  state  of  things,  most  of  the  men  were 
compelled  to  engage  in  winter  fishing. 
Several  men,  who  had  been  able  to  sustain 
their  families  comfortably  through  the  win 
ter  upon  the  earnings  of  the  summer,  were 
now  obliged  to  resort  to  this  laborious  em- 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         225 

ployment  to  gain  their  daily  bread.  Several 
of  the  owners  were  obliged  to  get  an  ex 
tension  of  their  credit,  and  some  were 
obliged  to  sell  property  at  a  sacrifice,  to 
meet  their  payments.  There  had  not  been 
so  much  distress  among  the  laboring  fish 
ermen  and  their  families  for  some  years  as 
was  experienced  during  this  winter.  The 
spring  fishing  had  been  unproductive,  and 
nearly  all  the  fishermen  on  the  Cape  had 
engaged  in  the  mackerel  fishing,  hoping  to 
make  up  for  the  want  of  success  in  the 
spring,  and  the  disastrous  result  of  this 
branch  of  their  labor  had  left  them  disap 
pointed  and  nearly  destitute.  It  had  also 
revealed  to  them  the  danger  of  this  fishery, 
and  destroyed  their  confidence  in  it  to  a 
great  extent, 


226  PETER   GOTT, 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

PETER  GOTT  BUILDS  A  VESSEL  AFTER  A  NEW  MODEL 
—  GOES  TO  THE  BANKS  IN  HER,  AND  TO  THE  BAY 
OF  ST.  LAWRENCE  AGAIN.  —  BOUNTY  LAWS. 

AFTER  settling  up  with  the  several  ves 
sels  in  which  he  was  interested,  selling  the 
mackerel,  and  paying  up  the  expenses  of 
the  year,  Peter  found  that  he  had  lost  dur 
ing  the  year  about  fifteen  hundred  dollars. 
This  was  to  him  a  heavy  loss  ;  but  he  was 
by  no  means  discouraged.  He  had  now 
seen  a  good  deal  of  the  world,  and  he  had 
found  out  that  losses  are  incident  to  all 
kinds  of  business,  especially  to  such  as  are 
carried  on  extensively.  He  had  reflect 
ed  upon  his  business  in  all  its  relations, 
and  losses  had  entered  into  his  calculations. 
He  had  also  learned  something  by  his  ob 
servations  at  the  Bay,  and  during  the  storm 
at  Prince  Edward's  Island.  He  had  noticed 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         227 

that  the  largest  vessels  made  the  best 
weather,  or  in  other  words,  that  the  men  on 
board  the  larger  vessels  were  better  pro 
tected  from  the  weather  and  suffered  less 
than  those  in  the  smaller  craft.  Pie  had 
also  noticed  that  all  the  vessels  that  were 
lost  were  poorly  fitted  with  ground  tackle, 
while  those  that  had  long  strings  of  cable 
and  heavy  anchors,  rode  out  the  storm  in 
safety.  He  was  a  man  to  profit  by  his  ob 
servations  ;  and  as  two  of  the  vessels  in 
which  he  owned  a  share  had  been  lost,  he 
induced  Mr.  Dennis  to  join  him  in  contract 
ing  for  a  schooner  of  seventy-five  tons, 
upon  a  model  somewhat  different  from  that 
upon  which  fishing  vessels  had  hitherto 
been  built.  She  was  to  have  a  longer 
beam  in  proportion  to  her  depth,  and  be 
better  adapted  to  the  stowage  of  cargo. 
Her  cabin  was  to  be  larger,  and  to  afford 
better  accommodations  to  her  crew.  She 
was  to  be  fitted  with  stouter  rigging,  and 
larger  and  longer  strings  of  cable  than 
any  fisherman  had  previously  carried.  Of 
course,  upon  such  a  model  it  would  take 


228 

more  timber  to  build  her,  and  her  hull 
would  cost  more  per  ton,  and  her  rigging 
would  be  much  more  expensive.  But  he 
was  convinced  that  she  would  be  safer,  and 
would  do  more  service  ;  and  besides,  if  she 
should  not  meet  his  expectations,  she  could 
readily  be  converted  to  some  other  use. 

Having  completed  his  arrangements,  he 
immediately  visited  Essex,  and  contracted 
with  Choate  &  Burnham,  two  of  the  most 
enterprizing  builders  of  that  place,  for  a 
vessel  upon  the  proposed  model.  Her  keel 
was  soon  laid,  and  by  Christmas  her  frame 
timbers  were  set  up.  She  attracted  much 
attention  as  the  work  progressed,  and  was 
visited  by  many  fishermen  and  owners,  and 
was  the  subject  of  much  speculation.  She 
was  to  cost  about  a  third  more,  in  propor 
tion  to  her  tonnage,  than  any  fishing  vessel 
that  had  ever  been  built  at  Essex.  Many 
doubted  whether  she  would  answer  the 
purpose  for  which  she  was  intended  as  well 
as  the  old  model,  and  still  more  doubted 
the  expediency  of  employing  in  this  busi 
ness  vessels  of  such  costly  construction. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         229 

In  every  pursuit  of  life,  new  ideas  work 
their  way  with  difficulty.  They  are  op 
posed  by  the  cautious  and  the  conservative. 
The  vain  and  the  self-conceited  consider 
every  man  who  advances  a  new  idea,  as 
tacitly  reproaching  them  for  not  having 
had  the  same  idea  in  their  own  minds.  It 
is  doubtless  well  that  most  men  are  held 
back  by  caution  from  rashly  adopting  new 
ideas,  and  acting  upon  them  before  they 
have  been  properly  tested.  Peter  was  not 
deficient  in  caution,  but  he  had  also  enter- 
prize  and  calculation,  and  his  careful  obser 
vation  furnished  him  a  safe  basis  for  his 
calculation,  and  he  was  seldom  deceived  in 
the  results  which  he  anticipated.  He  lis 
tened  with  good  nature  to  the  remarks  of 
all  sorts  of  critics. 

The  work  went  vigorously  on,  and  by 
the  first  of  April  he  brought  round  his 
beautiful  new  schooner,  under  full  sail,  with 
the  stars  and  stripes  at  her  topmast.  This 
was  quite  an  event  at  Pigeon  Cove,  and 
served  greatly  to  encourage  the  dispirited 
fishermen,  who  had  struggled  through  the 

20 


230  PETER   GOTT, 

winter  with  great  difficulty,  many  of  them 
being  almost  exhausted  by  the  severe  labor 
and  exposure  to  which  they  had  been  sub 
jected.  The  losses  which  Peter  had  made 
the  previous  year,  and  the  cost  of  his  new 
vessel,  one  half  of  which  belonged  to  him, 
induced  him  to  relinquish  his  purpose  of 
remaining  on  shore,  and  going  into  part 
nership  with  Mr.  Dennis  for  another  year, 
and  determined  him  to  take  command  of 
the  Dennis,  which  was  the  name  given  to 
the  new  vessel. 

A  good  skipper  can  always  get  a  good 
crew.  Before  his  vessel  was  off  the  stocks, 
Peter  had  shipped  a  crew  of  smart  young 
men  ;  he  had  his  pick  among  all  the  ambi 
tious  young  men  in  Pigeon  Cove  and  San 
dy  Bay.  The  crew  mustered  at  Essex, 
took  on  board  the  needful  ballast,  and  as 
sisted  in  navigating  the  vessel  across  Ips 
wich  Bay,  around  Halibut  Point,  and  into 
Pigeon  Cove,  on  the  first  of  April.  They 
now  set  about  fitting  her  for  the  Banks,  for 
this  was  the  destination  of  her  first  trip. 
It  is  no  small  job  to  fit  a  new  vessel  for 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         231 

sea ;  the  seamen  find  many  things  to  be 
done  after  she  has  left  the  hands  of  the 
carpenters.  The  first  thing  is  to  take  on 
board  a  sufficient  quantity  of  ballast,  and 
see  that  this  is  properly  secured.  In  a  flat 
bottomed  vessel  this  is  of  the  utmost  im 
portance.  When  the  hull  of  a  boat  is  heel 
ed  on  to  her  side  by  the  wind,  if  the  ballast 
is  loose,  it  will  naturally  roll  into  that  side 
that  is  in  the  water.  "When  this  happens, 
it  will  sometimes  prevent  the  boat  from 
righting,  in  consequence  of  which  it  soon 
fills  with  water,  and  founders.  Many  a 
small  vessel  has  been  lost  at  sea  in  conse 
quence  of  the  shifting  of  its  ballast.  To 
prevent  this,  a  partition  of  plank  is  built  on 
the  keelson,  dividing  the  hold  lengthwise, 
and  the  ballast  is  packed  one  half  on  one 
side  of  this  partition,  and  one  half  on  the 
other  side.  Then  a  chimney  is  built  in  the 
cabin  to  convey  the  smoke  from  the  stove, 
and  various  fixtures  are  put  up  in  different 
parts  of  the  cabin  and  hold ;  loops  are  fitted 
to  the  stanchions,  to  hold  harpoons  and 
boatrhooks.  The  water-cask  is  mounted  on 


232  PETER   GOTT, 

deck  and  secured  ;  the  harness-cask  is  fitted 
in  its  place.  Then  provisions,  water  and 
salt  are  taken  on  board  and  stowed  away. 
Fishing  lines  and  reels  and  splitting  knives 
are  put  in  their  proper  places ;  lines  are 
rove  to  the  water  buckets ;  oil  butts  are 
put  in  their  place  ;  wood  is  cut  and  split, 
and  taken  on  board  for  fuel.  Mattresses, 
bedding,  and,  lastly,  sea-chests  are  taken  on 
board  ;  and  when  every  thing  is  ready,  the 
skipper  carries  on  board  the  compass. 

During  the  first  voyage  of  a  new  vessel, 
the  seamen  find  many  little  things  to  be 
done,  which  occupy  their  leisure  hours, — 
such  as  whipping  the  loose  ends  of  the 
sheets  and  the  ends  of  the  boats'  painters ; 
lashing  pieces  of  old  canvas  around  the 
cables,  where  they  lay  in  the  hauseholes, 
to  prevent  chafing ;  and  various  things  that 
tend  to  make  the  rigging  safe  and  contri 
bute  to  the  convenience  of  its  working. 
Peter  and  his  crew  were  ambitious  that 
every  thing  on  board  their  new  craft  should 
be  ship-shape,  and  when  they  returned  from 
the  Banks,  not  a  vessel  in  the  whole  fleet 
was  in  so  perfect  order  as  the  Dennis. 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         233 

They  sailed  about  the  middle  of  April. 
The  vessel  proved  a  good  sea-boat ;  she 
sailed  well.  But  as  rapid  sailing  had  not 
been  the  leading  object  with  her  skipper, 
he  had  not  fitted  her  with  masts  so  tall 
that  it  was  difficult  for  her  to  keep  on  her 
legs,  whenever  she  met  a  capful  of  wind. 
The  crew  found  themselves  more  comforta 
ble  on  board  her  than  they  had  ever  been 
before  in  a  fishing  vessel.  They  reached 
the  fishing  ground  in  safety,  and  remained 
on  the  Banks  nine  weeks.  At  the  end  of 
this  time  they  had  caught  six  hundred  and 
fifty  quintals  of  fish.  The  vessel  was  found 
to  stow  her  fare  more  conveniently  than 
those  of  shorter  model.  Her  deck  was 
wider,  and  it  was  more  convenient  to  dress 
the  fish  upon  it  than  on  any  of  the  old 
vessels.  Soon  after  they  left  the  Bank  for 
home,  she  encountered  a  gale,  which  tried 
her  strength  and  qualities  as  a  sea-boat. 
She  stood  the  trial  to  the  entire  satisfac 
tion  of  all  on  board,  although  she  was  load 
ed  down  almost  to  her  water-ways.  She 
reached  Pigeon  Cove  on  the  sixth  of  July, 

20* 


234  PETER   GOTT, 

without  damage,  discharged  her  fare,  and 
immediately  fitted  out  for  the  Bay  of  St. 
Lawrence,  for  a  mackerel  trip.  She  took 
on  board  her  mackerel  gear,  which  is  en 
tirely  different  from  that  required  for  cod 
fishing,  and  six  hundred  barrels,  a  suffi 
cient  supply  of  salt,  and  provisions  for  six 
months. 

One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  American 
Congress,  after  the  establishment  of  Inde 
pendence,  was  to  offer  a  bounty  to  fisher 
men  who  should  be  actually  engaged  in 
fishing  four  months  in  the  year,  and  who 
should  catch  a  certain  number  of  quintals 
of  fish  per  ton  of  the  vessels  employed. 
At  the  period  of  which  we  speak,  the  fish 
ermen  pursued  such  branch  of  the  fisheries 
as  they  found  convenient  or  most  profita 
ble,  and  at  the  end  of  the  year  received 
the  bounty,  provided  they  had  caught  the 
number  of  quintals  required,  without  much 
regard  to  the  time  actually  employed  in 
cod  fishing.  For  some  years  past,  the  law 
has  been  more  stringently  interpreted.  No 
vessel  now  is  allowed  to  receive  the  bounty 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         235 

which  cannot  make  it  appear  that  she  has 
been  actually  occupied  four  months  in  cod 
fishing,  whatever  number  of  quintals  of 
codfish  she  may  have  taken  per  ton ;  and 
if  a  vessel  is  found  engaged  in  mackerel 
fishing,  under  a  cod  fishing  license,  she  for 
feits  all  claim  to  bounty.  Vessels  now  take 
a  cod  fishing  license  in  the  spring,  and  pur 
sue  this  kind  of  fishing  two,  three  or  four 
months,  as  they  find  it  convenient,  before 
engaging  in  the  mackerel  fishery.  If  they 
have  not  completed  the  four  months  when 
the  mackerel  season  commences,  they  go  to 
the  custom-house  of  the  district  in  which 
the  vessel  belongs,  and  deposit  their  license 
with  the  collector,  and  take  out  what  is 
called  a  mackerel  license,  and  after  follow 
ing  the  mackerel  fishing  as  long  as  they 
choose,  receive  their  cod  fishing  license 
again,  and  complete  their  four  months,  that 
they  may  be  entitled  to  the  bounty. 

This  is  a  source  of  much  trouble  and  an 
noyance  to  the  fishermen,  and  there  is  no 
good  reason  why  this  distinction  should  be 
made  between  cod  fishing  and  mackerel 


236  PETEE   GOTT, 

fishing  by  the  government.  The  latter  is 
as  profitable  to  the  country.  It  involves 
more  capital  and  risk,  and  contributes  quite 
as  much  to  the  training  of  good  seamen  as 
the  former.  Peter  and  his  associates  were 
not  subjected  to  so  much  petty  annoyance. 
If  they  caught  the  number  of  quintals  per 
ton  required  by  law,  they  received  their 
bounty,  without  being  required  to  make 
out  four  months  in  actual  cod  fishing. 
This  left  them  at  liberty  to  devote  the  re 
mainder  of  the  season  wholly  to  the  mack 
erel  fishery,  if  they  chose,  and  to  lay  out 
their  voyages  as  might  best  suit  their  con 
venience.  For  many  years  past  the  Amer 
ican  government,  instead  of  fostering  the 
great  American  interest  of  the  fisheries, 
which  was  the  obvious  purpose  of  those 
who  first  framed  the  laws  relating  to  the 
subject,  has  apparently  thrown  all  the  ob 
stacles  in  their  power  in  its  way,  and  done 
what  they  could  to  harrass  and  cripple 
those  engaged  in  it.  Treaty  regulations 
have  been  made  with  relation  to  it,  by  men 
who  understood  little  or  nothing  about  it ; 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         237 

and  treasury  orders  have  been  issued  by 
men  who,  if  they  knew  any  thing  concern 
ing  it,  were  evidently  willing  to  sacrifice 
it  to  other  and  less  important  interests.  It 
is  to  be  hoped  that  the  American  govern 
ment  will  one  day  be  in  the  hands  of  men 
who  will  consider  American  interests  para 
mount  to  all  other  interests,  and  will  con 
sider  the  laboring  classes  as  entitled  to  re 
gard  and  protection.  The  thousands  of 
seamen  and  fishermen,  who  are  annually 
adding  largely  to  the  wealth  of  the  coun 
try  by  hard  labor,  and  at  the  risk  of  their 
lives,  are  surely  as  well  entitled  to  protec 
tion  in  their  persons  and  property,  as  those 
who  are  producing  cotton  and  sugar  and 
iron,  at  infinitely  less  risk  and  hardship. 

Captain  Gott  embarked,  on  the  first  of 
August,  in  the  Dennis,  and  directed  his 
course  to  Mount  Desert,  and  looked  for 
mackerel  among  the  islands  along  the  coast 
of  Maine.  Finding  but  few  mackerel,  he 
ran  down  to  the  Bay  of  Fundy,  and  having 
coasted  around  the  bay,  put  into  Yarmouth, 
on  the  south-west  coast  of  Nova  Scotia. 


238  PETER    GOTT, 

Learning  here  all  he  could  respecting  the 
course  which  the  mackerel  schools  were 
pursuing,  he  ran  down  to  Canso,  which 
separates  the  island  of  Breton  from  Nova 
Scotia,  and  having  passed  the  Strait,  put 
into  Charlotte,  the  principal  town  on  Prince 
Edward's  Island.  Here  he  landed  ninety 
barrels  of  mackerel,  which  he  had  already 
taken,  and  then  struck  boldly  across  the 
Bay  of  St.  Lawrence  to  the  island  of  Anti- 
costi,  and  commenced  fishing  around  its 
shores.  Mackerel  fishermen  had  never  be 
fore  visited  this  region.  Cod  fishermen 
had  occasionally  visited  the  coast  of  Labra 
dor  to  the  northward  of  this  point,  towards 
the  Straits  of  Belle  Isle,  but  mackerel  fish 
ermen  had  never  been  to  the  north  of  the 
Magdalen  Islands.  Early  in  September  he 
found  the  mackerel  passing  in  great  num 
bers  between  the  island  and  the  Labrador 
coast.  He  met  with  good  success  in  taking 
them.  In  addition  to  this,  he  went  on 
shore  on  the  island,  and  induced  several  of 
the  French,  people  to  engage  in  his  service, 
furnishing  them  with  a  boat  and  lines,  and 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         239 

taking  the  mackerel  which  they  caught 
from  day  to  day,  paying  for  them  liberally 
in  goods,  which  he  had  on  board. 

In  the  course  of  two  weeks  he  filled  four 
hundred  barrels.  The  school  having  now 
gone  by,  he  left  the  ground  and  ran  for  the 
Magdalen  Islands.  The  weather  was  grow 
ing  cold,  and  the  equinox  was  near  by ; 
but  in  three  days  he  took  another  hundred 
barrels.  Indications  of  a  storm  now  appear 
ing,  he  ran  for  Charlotte,  and  arrived  just 
as  the  equinoctial  storm  broke  upon  them. 

Here  he  found  but  few  American  fisher 
men.  The  great  storm  of  the  previous 
year,  and  the  severe  losses  which  they  had 
sustained,  deterred  most  of  them  from  visit 
ing  the  Bay  of  St.  Lawrence  this  year.  A 
few  had  gone  to  Mirimachi  and  the  Bay 
of  Chaleur,  but  most  of  them  had  confined 
their  operations  to  the  westward  of  Nova 
Scotia  and  the  Bay  of  Fundy.  Those  who 
had  gone  to  the  Bay  of  St.  Lawrence  had 
been  quite  successful,  and  on  visiting  Eich- 
mond  and  Souris,  the  scenes  of  the  disaster 
of  the  previous  year,  were  received  with 


240  PETER    GOTT, 

great  hospitality  by  the  inhabitants,  who 
were  quite  disposed  to  encourage  them  to 
repeat  their  annual  visit,  for  the  sake  of  the 
supply  of  goods  which  they  were  thus  able 
to  obtain  in  payment  for  the  mackerel 
which  they  sold  them. 

Peter  rode  out  the  storm,  which  lasted 
two  days,  in  perfect  safety,  as  did  all  the 
others  with  him,  except  one.  This  one 
dragged  her  anchor  and  went  on  to  the 
beach.  As  soon  as  the  storm  was  over, 
Peter  passed  through  the  Gut  of  Canso  and 
lay  along  the  southern  coast  of  Nova  Sco 
tia,  and  by  the  last  of  September  he  took 
fifty  barrels  more.  He  now  sailed  for 
home,  where  he  arrived  on  the  twelfth  of 
October  with  six  hundred  and  forty  barrels 
of  fish,  the  largest  fare  that  had  ever  been 
brought  into  Cape  Ann.  Four  hundred 
barrels  of  them  were  No.  Is,  worth,  that 
year,  seven  dollars  per  barrel.  One  hun 
dred  and  fifty  of  the  remainder  were  No.  2, 
worth  five  dollars  per  barrel.  The  remain 
ing  ninety  barrels  of  No.  3,  were  worth 
three  dollars — making  the  fare  worth  three 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         241 

thousand  seven  hundred  and  twenty  dol 
lars.  The  whole  vessel  belonged  to  Mr. 
Dennis  and  Peter.  The  vessel's  share  was 
eighteen  hundred  and  sixty  dollars,  half  of 
which,  nine  hundred  and  thirty,  belonged 
to  Peter.  His  share,  as  one  of  the  crew, 
was  one  hundred  and  seventy-six  dollars, 
and  his  per  centage  as  skipper  ninety-three 
dollars,  making  about  twelve  hundred  dol 
lars. 

This  was  the  most  profitable  trip  he  had 
ever  made.  His  portion  of  the  returns  of 
the  trip  to  the  Banks  was  between  five  and 
six  hundred  dollars.  The  four  other  ves 
sels  in  which  he  was  interested,  spent  the 
fishing  season  on  the  coast  of  Maine  and  in 
the  Bay  of  Fundy,  and  were  tolerably  suc 
cessful.  These  vessels  encountered  no  se 
vere  storm  this  year  and  suffered  but  little 
damage,  and  Peter's  share  of  their  united 
profits  was  about  fourteen  hundred  dollars, 
making  his  whole  income  for  the  year 
about  three  thousand  dollars. 

21 


242  PETER    GOTT. 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

FORMS  A  PARTNERSHIP  WITH  MR.  DENNIS.  —  HIS  FAMI 
LY. —  SCHOOLS. —  A  BUSY  LIFE.  —  DISSOLVES  PART 
NERSHIP. —  A  NEW  STORE  AND  NEW  FIRM. —  VOYAGE 
TO  THE  WEST  INDIES. 

HE  now  found  himself  in  a  situation  to 
carry  out  the  plan  previously  agreed  upon 
between  him  and  Mr.  Dennis,  viz.,  that  he 
should  quit  the  sea  and  form  a  partnership 
with  Mr.  Dennis,  and  take  charge  of  the 
business  on  shore.  After  selling  off  the 
fish  and  mackerel,  and  settling  with  the 
crews,  who  had  been  in  their  vessels  during 
the  year,  this  arrangement  was  carried  into 
effect,  and  a  firm  constituted,  under  the 
name  of  Dennis  &  Gott. 

Peter  Gott  was  now  forty-six  years  old. 
The  labors  and  hardships  he  had  endured 
gave  him  the  appearance  of  being  more 
than  fifty.  He  had  acquired  more  expe- 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         243 

rience  than  most  men  of  his  calling  of  sixty. 
His  character  as  a  man  of  integrity  was 
well  established,  and  his  intelligence  and 
well-known  enterprize  gave  him  great  in 
fluence  among  all  engaged  in  the  fishing 
business.  He  had  been  foremost  in  explor 
ing  every  new  field  of  labor,  and  ascertain 
ing  the  feasibility  of  every  new  branch  of 
the  business.  His  credit  was  undoubted 
among  all  the  furnishing  houses  of  Boston, 
and  they  were  all  eager  to  enrol  him 
among  their  customers.  His  family  con 
sisted  of  six  children — two  sons  and  four 
daughters.  His  eldest  son  was  nineteen 
years  old.  During  the  four  previous  sum 
mers,  he  had  been  engaged  in  the  mackerel 
fishery,  a  part  of  the  time  with  his  father, 
and  a  part  of  the  time  in  one  of  their  other 
vessels  on  the  coast.  During  the  winters 
he  had  diligently  improved  the  advantages 
afforded  by  such  schools  as  then  existed  on 
the  Cape. 

The  beautiful  and  convenient  school- 
houses  that  may  now  be  seen  all  over  the 
Cape,  had  no  existence  in  those  days.  The 


244  PETER    GOTT, 

well-arranged  system  of  schools  which  the 
people  have  recently  established,  so  honor 
ably  to  themselves  and  with  the  promise 
of  so  much  advantage  to  their  children,  ex 
isted  then  only  in  embryo.  There  were 
very  few  school-houses  of  any  kind.  One 
of  the  first  school-houses  erected  was  six 
teen  feet  by  twelve,  and  an  old  record  ex 
ists,  which  shows  that  in  the  contract  made 
with  the  carpenter,  he  was  required  to  build 
it  so  that  the  school-room  should  be  not 
more  than  six  feet  high.  There  were  seve 
ral  dame  schools,  as  they  were  then  called, 
taught  chiefly  by  widows  or  elderly  maid 
ens,  in  which  children  were  taught  to  read 
and  spell,  and  to  say  the  multiplication  ta 
ble  and  the  catechism.  These  schools  were 
generally  taught  in  rooms  in  private  houses, 
and  often  in  the  same  room  in  which  the 
work  of  the  family  was  carried  on.  There 
was  one  school,  called  a  grammar  school, 
for  the  whole  Cape.  This  was  kept  six 
months  at  the  Harbor  and  three  months  at 
Sandy  Bay,  and  three  months  at  Squam, 
the  same  master  going  from  place  to  place 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.         245 

with  the  school,  which  was  taught  in  the 
best  room  that  could  be  found  for  the  pur 
pose.  There  were  also  two  or  three  men 
who  devoted  themselves  to  the  office  of 
private  instruction,  and  when  the  grammar 
school  was  not  keeping  in  their  neighbor 
hood,  were  pretty  well  patronized. 

In  the  history  of  the  schools  of  the  Cape, 
the  names  of  Riggs,  Eogers  and  Saville  de 
serve  to  be  commemorated.  They  were 
the  educational  lights  of  their  day,  and  the 
good  people  of  the  Cape  have  expressed 
their  respect  for  their  memories  by  giving 
their  names  to  schools  which  have  been 
established  in  the  vicinity  of  their  several 
residences.  In  the  grammar  school,  in  ad 
dition  to  reading  and  spelling,  penmanship, 
arithmetic  and  grammar  were  taught. 

Peter  Gott's  family  lived  within  the  limits 
of  the  parish  of  Squam.  His  children  at 
tended  the  grammar  school  when  it  was 
taught  in  that  parish,  so  soon  as  they  be 
came  old  enough  to  travel  a  mile  and  a 
half  through  the  snows  of  winter  to  reach 
it.  But  these  advantages,  such  as  they 

21* 


246  PETEK    GOTT, 

were,  were  not  lost  to  the  men  of  those 
times.  Peter  Gott,  Jr.  had  acquired  a  good 
practical  knowledge  of  figures,  wrote  a  good 
hand,  and  was  able  to  take  the  place  of  a 
clerk  in  the  establishment  of  Dennis  &  Gott. 
In  large  fishing  establishments,  in  which 
twelve  or  fifteen  vessels  are  fitted  out,  there 
is  a  great  deal  of  work  to  be  done.  The 
vessels  average  eight  hands  each,  making  a 
hundred  or  more.  Half  of  these,  perhaps, 
have"  families,  containing  four  souls  besides 
themselves.  Here,  then,  are  three  hundred 
persons  to  be  supplied  with  the  necessaries 
of  life.  An  account  is  to  be  kept  with  each 
person  in  the  employment  of  the  establish 
ment,  and  a  separate  settlement  made  with 
each  one  at  the  close  of  the  year.  The 
bounty  also,  which  each  man  receives,  gene 
rally  passes  through  the  establishment. 
This,  together  with  the  general  accounts  of 
purchases  and  sales,  accounts  with  freight 
ers  and  with  coopers  and  packers  and  those 
who  make  the  codfish,  makes  the  book 
keeping  of  the  establishment  a  laborious 
and  important  work.  Three  or  four  out- 


THE    CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          247 

door  laborers  are  usually  employed  in  the 
spring  and  fall  at  least. 

Peter  now  found  himself  fully  employed. 
He  had  to  attend  to  the  repairs  of  the  ves 
sels  ;  to  the  purchase  of  rigging  and  outfits 
for  the  vessels  and  goods  for  the  store  ;  to 
the  sales  of  fish,  and  the  collecting  of  bills ; 
to  the  obtaining  of  insurance  and  fishing 
licenses ;  to  the  securing  of  skippers  for  the 
several  vessels,  and  the  multifarious  cares 
of  the  establishment.  He  was  also  chosen 
one  of  the  directors  of  the  insurance  com 
pany,  at  which  most  of  his  insurance  was 
done.  As  he  was  now  to  live  on  shore,  he 
was  expected  to  take  an  interest  in  the 
municipal  affairs  of  the  town.  Fishermen 
who  are  absent  a  large  part  of  the  year, 
even  if  they  are  qualified  and  disposed  to 
act  in  public  affairs,  have  little  time  or  op 
portunity  to  do  so.  Their  owners,  as  the 
outfitting  merchants  are  called,  are  expect 
ed  to  represent  them  and  look  after  their 
interests.  A  new  man,  one  who  leaves  the 
sea  and  settles  on  shore,  must  take  his  turn 
as  school  committee  and  surveyor  of  high- 


PETER    GOTT, 

ways.  In  short,  he  must  be  willing  to  serve 
in  all  the  offices  of  the  town.  These  offices 
are  not  in  general  sought  for  by  the  citi 
zens,  except  occasionally,  to  secure  some 
local  or  temporary  interest,  but  are  consid 
ered  a  task,  which  each  man  who  is  com 
petent  must  perform  in  his  turn.  Peter 
Gott  was  chosen  school  committee  man  for 
his  neighborhood,  and  feeling  a  deep  in 
terest  to  secure  to  his  own  children  the 
best  advantages  in  his  power  in  the  way 
of  education,  he  attended  faithfully  to  the 
duties  of  this  office,  and  procured  the  best 
teacher  within  his  power  for  the  two  months 
during  which  the  public  school  continued. 
Whatever  business  or  office  he  undertook 
for  the  public,  he  brought  to  it  the  same 
good  judgment  and  diligence  which  had 
distinguished  him  in  his  private  business. 
This  soon  secured  him  the  confidence  of  his 
fellow  citizens  to  such  a  degree,  that  it  was 
difficult  for  him  to  keep  out  of  the  offices 
which  were  urged  upon  him,  and  which 
most  men  in  other  places  are  ambitious  to 
obtain.  He  was  not  desirous  of  that  influ- 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         249 

ence  which  results  from  official  position ;  he 
chose  rather  to  devote  himself  diligently  to 
his  own  business,  and  in  this  he  found  full 
occupation  for  all  his  energies. 

After  one  year,  Mr.  Dennis  left  the  man 
agement  of  the  affairs  of  the  firm  almost 
exclusively  to  him.  Under  his  direction, 
and  guided  by  his  good  judgment,  the  vari 
ous  skippers  in  their  employment  engaged 
in  those  various  branches  of  the  business 
which  promised  the  most  advantage,  and 
generally  with  good  success.  He  did  not 
confine  his  attention  exclusively  to  any 
one  branch  of  the  fisheries ;  some  of  their 
vessels  pursued  the  cod  fishery  on  the 
Banks,  and  the  smaller  ones  nearer  home 
on  the  coast.  Some  went  one  trip  to  the 
Banks,  and  then  fitted  out  for  the  mackerel 
fishery.  Some  of  them,  in  the  proper  sea 
son,  pursued  the  pollock  fishing.  At  the 
end  of  three  years  they  had  fifteen  vessels 
connected  with  the  establishment.  They 
'were  part  owners  of  them  all,  which  secur 
ed  for  them  the  business  of  fitting  them 
out,  and  the  sale  of  the  fish  which  they 


250  PETER    GOTT, 

caught,  together  with  the  supply  of  groce 
ries  and  staple  dry  goods  to  the  families  of 
the  men.  This  miscellaneous  business  re 
quired  them  to  keep  a  general  assortment 
of  goods  in  their  store,  making  it  what  is 
called  a  variety  store. 

As  the  general  prosperity  of  the  people 
of  the  village  increased,  the  demand  for  a 
greater  variety  and  better  quality  of  goods 
increased  also.  This  required  that  a  larger 
assortment  of  goods  should  be  kept  by  the 
merchant.  Peter  had  shrewdness  enough 
to  keep  up  with  the  times.  In  the  course 
of  four  or  five  years  from  the  time  when 
he  united  with  Mr.  Dennis  in  business,  they 
not  only  had  the  largest  fishing  establish 
ment  on  the  eastern  part  of  the  Cape,  but 
by  far  the  largest  and  best  assortment  of 
goods  in  their  store.  This  had  the  natural 
effect  of  drawing  to  them  a  considerable 
trade  from  the  inhabitants  who  were  not 
engaged  in  the  fishing  business,  and  from 
those  who  were  not  in  their  employment. 
At  the  end  of  five  years  they  were  com 
pelled  to  build  a  new  store,  and  enlarge 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         251 

their  wharf  and  packing  accommodations. 
The  old  store  was  used  as  a  store-house  for 
salt  and  fish. 

The  general  appearance  of  the  village 
had  much  improved.  Several  new  houses 
had  been  erected,  and  instead  of  the  rust- 
colored  moss,  which  attaches  itself  to  the 
outer  surfaces  of  buildings  near  the  coast? 
the  houses  newly  erected  were  neatly  paint 
ed.  As  larger  vessels  were  now  employed 
in  the  fishing  business  than  formerly,  bet 
ter  wharves  were  required  for  their  accom 
modation,  runing  out  into  deeper  water. 
These,  instead  of  being  built  of  timber,  ar 
ranged  cobhouse  fashion  as  formerly,  when 
timber  was  the  cheapest  and  most  abun 
dant  material,  were  now  constructed  of 
substantial  stone  walls,  connected  together 
by  cross  timbers,  and  filled  in  with  stones 
and  covered  with  plank.  Evidences  of  gen 
eral  thrift  were  apparent.  They  still  had 
to  take  their  vessels  around  to  Gloucester 
Harbor  to  winter,  as  the  artificial  harbors, 
that  have  since  been  constructed  at  great 
labor  and  expense,  did  not  then  exist. 


252  PETER    GOTT, 

Peter  Gott,  Jr.  had  now  become  an  ex 
cellent  young  man,  with  a  character  well 
established  for  talents  and  integrity.  He 
was  not  only  an  expert  book-keeper,  but 
an  accommodating  clerk,  and  well  skilled 
in  the  purchase  and  sale  of  goods.  Mr- 
Dennis  was  now  more  than  seventy  years 
old,  and  quite  disposed  to  retire  from  all 
active  participation  in  the  affairs  of  the 
firm ;  and  finding  that  young  Gott  had  set 
his  affections  upon  his  only  grand-daughter, 
Mary  Pool,  of  Sandy  Bay,  he  proposed  to 
withdraw  his  name  from  the  firm,  remain 
ing  a  silent  partner  to  the  amount  of  ten 
thousand  dollars.  The  old  sign  of  Den 
nis  &  Gott  was  taken  down,  and  a  new 
sign,  of  more  pretension  to  artistic  skill, 
was  established  in  its  place,  on  the  front  of 
the  new  store,  bearing  the  name  of  Peter 
Gott  &  Son.  But  with  the  change  in  the 
name  of  the  firm,  no  change  occurred  in  the 
principles  upon  which  its  business  was  car 
ried  on.  Industry,  economy  and  careful 
attention  to  every  part  of  the  business, 
were  no  less  strictly  exercised  than  before. 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          253 

The  habits  of  the  house,  in  all  these  re 
spects,  were  well  established.  They  had  a 
hundred  and  twenty-five  men  in  their  em 
ployment  as  fishermen ;  most  of  their  ves 
sels  were  of  the  larger  and  better  class. 
They  had  one  or  two  new  vessels  built 
every  winter.  After  running  them  about 
two  years,  and  before  their  sails  and  rigging 
needed  renewing,  they  often  sold  them  to 
go  into  the  coasting  business,  or  to  fisher 
men  from  other  ports.  This  was  one  of 
the  advantages  resulting  from  the  new  and 
more  convenient  model  which  Mr.  Gott 
had  introduced.  They  could  be  employed 
in  the  summer  as  fishing  vessels,  and  in  the 
winter  as  coasters.  Vessels  of  this  class 
indeed  often  made  voyages  in  the  winter  to 
the  West  Indies,  freighted  with  provisions  in 
the  hold  and  lumber  on  deck,  and  brought 
back  return  cargoes  of  rum,  molasses  and 
sugar. 

Young  Gott,  finding  that  several  of  these 

West  India  voyages  from  Salem  and  New- 

buryport  had    proved   profitable   to  their 

owners,  and  being  disposed  to  see  more  of 

22 


254  PETER   GOTT, 

the  world  than  he  had  yet  seen,  proposed 
to  his  father  to  undertake  such  a  voyage. 
They  had  a  fine  new  schooner,  which  had 
come  from  Essex  in  July,  and  had  been  one 
trip  to  the  Bay  for  mackerel.  This  he  pro 
posed  to  load  with  dry  fish,  and  take  on  a 
deck-load  of  boards,  which  he  proposed  to 
bring  up  from  Portsmouth  for  the  purpose, 
and  take  his  uncle  Gott  for  captain,  and  go 
himself  as  mate  and  supercargo.  This  plan 
was  soon  agreed  to,  and  the  half  of  the 
schooner  which  did  not  belong  to  the  firm, 
was  chartered  of  its  owners,  and  they  im 
mediately  set  about  fitting  her  out  for  the 
voyage.  They  sent  to  Portsmouth,  and 
purchased  a  sufficient  quantity  of  boards 
of  the  quality  suitable  for  that  market,  and 
selected  four  hundred  quintals  of  fish,  heav 
ily  salted,  such  as  are  in  demand  for  the 
use  of  the  negroes  on  the  plantations. 
These  fish  are  called  scale  fish ;  they  con 
sist  of  hake  and  haddock.  They  take  a 
great  deal  of  salt,  and  dry  harder  and  bear 
handling  better,  and  keep  better  in  a  warm 
climate  than  codfish.  They  are  also  of  less 


THE    CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.          255 

value  than  codfish,  and  the  planters,  who 
desire  to  get  provisions  for  their  negroes  as 
cheaply  as  possible,  prefer  them  to  codfish. 
These  fish  are  shipped  in  large  casks,  screw 
ed  down  firmly  and  stowed  in  the  hold. 
They  soon  had  the  fish  stowed  in  this  way 
and  took  on  deck  the  boards,  which  had 
arrived  from  Portsmouth;  and  about  the 
first  of  December  young  Gott  set  sail  for 
Jamaica.  He  returned  about  the  last  of 
March,  having  made  a  good  voyage.  They 
cleared  about  twelve  hundred  dollars,  after 
paying  all  the  expenses  of  the  voyage. 


256  PETER   GOTT, 


CHAPTER   XX. 

MULLET  FISHING. —  CLAM  DIGGING. —  PETER  GOTT  GRAD 
UALLY  WITHDRAWS  FROM  THE  BUSINESS  OF  THE  FIRM. 
—  BECOMES  A  CULTIVATOR  OF  THE  SOIL.  —  GOES  TO 
THE  LEGISLATURE. —  HIS  CHARACTER,  AND  THE  CLOS 
ING  SCENES  OF  HIS  LIFE. 

SOON  after  this  vessel  had  sailed  for 
Jamaica,  Mr.  Gott,  who  had  been  for  some 
time  making  inquiries  with  regard  to  the 
subject,  fitted  out  an  expedition  for  a  new 
branch  of  fishing.  There  is  a  fish  called 
mullet,  which  abounds  on  the  southern 
coast  of  the  United  States,  and  especially 
in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  during  the  winter. 
This  fish,  either  fresh  or  pickled,  is  in  de 
mand  in  the  southern  market,  and  is  nearly 
as  valuable  as  mackerel.  During  the  month 
of  December,  Mr.  Gott  and  some  of  his 
neighbors  fitted  out  two  vessels  to  engage 
in  this  fishery.  As  mullet  fishing  could 
not  very  well  be  classed  under  the  head  of 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          257 

cod  fishing  or  mackerel  fishing,  they  found 
some  difficulty  at  the  custom-house  in  get 
ting  a  license,  but  finally  settled  it  by 
taking  a  general  fishing  license,  without 
specifying  the  kind  of  fish  to  be  taken. 

They  arrived  out  at  Florida  in  safety, 
and  had  every  prospect  of  a  successful  trip. 
But  after  they  had  been  on  the  coast  a  few 
days,  a  norther  came  on  to  blow,  and  they 
ran  into  a  port  on  the  coast.  Here  a  cus 
tom-house  officer  demanded  their  license. 
He  had  never  known  northern  vessels,  or 
vessels  of  such  a  description,  to  engage  in 
this  fishery,  and  was  probably  suspicious 
that  they  were  wreckers  in  disguise,  or  that 
their  purpose  was  to  engage  in  smuggling, 
or  some  other  illegal  pursuit ;  and  finding 
that  mullet  fishing  was  not  specified  in 
their  license,  he  refused  to  return  it  to 
them.  As  no  vessel  is  allowed  to  navigate 
the  waters  of  the  United  States  without  a 
license  of  some  kind,  under  penalty  of  be 
ing  taken  for  a  piratical  vessel,  and  forfeit 
ed  to  the  government,  they  found  them 
selves  in  difficulty  at  once.  They  could 

22* 


258  PETER    GOTT, 

not  pursue  their  voyage,  nor  could  they 
return  home  with  their  vessels. 

They  immediately  wrote  to  their  owners 
for  instructions.  Mr.  Gott,  after  having 
been  at  so  much  pains  and  expense  to 
make  an  experiment  in  a  new  branch  of 
fishery,  which  he  hoped  would  prove  bene 
ficial  to  the  fishing  interest,  was  highly  in 
dignant  that  his  people  should  be  charged 
with  being  engaged  in  illegal  pursuits,  and 
his  plans  thus  interfered  with  by  an  igno 
rant  and  conceited  official.  After  consult 
ing  counsel,  he  wrote  to  the  masters  of  the 
vessels  to  abandon  them  to  the  government, 
and  return  home  in  the  best  way  they 
could.  Some  of  the  men  went  to  New  Or 
leans,  and  shipped  from  thence  to  Boston  ; 
others  shipped  on  board  vessels  bound  to 
the  West  Indies,  and  thence  returned  to 
Boston.  In  the  course  qf  the  winter  they 
all  reached  home. 

Mr.  Gott  immediately  entered  a  protest 
in  due  form,  and  commenced  an  action 
against  the  government  for  the  recovery 
of  his  vessels,  and  damages  arising  from 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         259 

their  detention.  This  involved  him  in  a 
long  and  tedious  lawsuit,  and  was  a  source 
of  much  expense  and  anxiety.  But  at 
length  a  hearing  was  obtained  before  the 
proper  court,  and  a  verdict  was  given  in 
his  favor.  The  representative  in  Congress 
from  the  district  to  which  Cape  Ann  be 
longs,  rendered  essential  service  in  the  case, 
and  did  all  in  his  power  to  promote  the  in 
terest  and  security  of  the  fishermen ;  and 
it  was  owing,  in  no  small  degree,  to  the  re 
presentations  which  he  made  to  the  court, 
that  a  favorable  verdict  was  obtained. 

Like  most  other  lawsuits,  even  when  a 
verdict  is  obtained  in  favor  of  the  plaintiff, 
this  lawsuit  cost  more  than  it  came  to.  He 
lost  the  use  of  his  vessels  for  more  than  a 
year  and  a  half;  and  the  expense  of  attend 
ing  court,  of  witnesses'  fees  and  board,  and 
lawyers'  fees,  and  the  whole  tissue  of  ex 
penses  which  courts  and  lawyers  know  so 
well  how  to  spin  out,  amounted  to  more 
than  the  damages  obtained.  As  the  expe 
dition  had  been  undertaken  at  the  sugges 
tion  of  Mr.  Gott,  and  he  had  had  the  entire 


260 


PETER    GOTT, 


management  of  it,  so  he  assumed  the  man 
agement  of  the  lawsuit,  and  paid  the  whole 
expense.  There  were  several  men  engaged 
in  the  expedition,  who  owned  shares  in  the 
vessels.  These  shares  were  nearly  all  the 
property  they  owned  in  the  world;  the 
loss  of  the  use  of  their  vessels  during  this 
period,  and  the  loss  of  their  own  time,  and 
the  expenses  of  the  lawsuit  would  have 
ruined  them.  Mr.  Gott  took  these  men 
into  his  employment,  and  paid  them  the 
full  share  of  the  damage  recovered,  without 
charging  them  any  part  of  the  expense. 

This  affair  cost  him  all  that  had  been 
made  in  the  trip  to  Jamaica  by  his  son. 
But  it  settled  a  question  of  much  impor 
tance  to  northern  fishermen,  and  ascertain 
ed  that  under  a  general  fishing  license,  they 
might  fish  any  where  in  the  waters  of  the 
United  States,  for  any  description  of  fish. 

The  failure  of  the  expedition  to  make 
any  pecuniary  return  to  the  owners,  owing 
to  the  above  cause,  discouraged  them 
from  renewing  the  attempt,  and  nothing 
more  was  done  in  the  mullet  fishery.  This 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         261 

branch  of  the  fisheries  is  still  open  for  some 
enterprizing  Yankee  to  engage  in,  and 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that,  with  proper 
management,  it  may  be  made  profitable. 
The  petty  restrictions  that  are  still  attach 
ed  to  the  United  States'  license  system,  are 
a  constant  source  of  annoyance  to  the  fish 
ing  interest,  and  it  is  high  time  that  the 
whole  system  were  thoroughly  revised,  and 
its  provisions  rendered  more  liberal.  If  a 
man  determines,  at  the  beginning  of  the 
season,  to  apply  for  the  cod  fishing  bounty, 
let  him  conform  to  the  rules  under  which 
that  bounty  is  distributed ;  but  if  he  does 
not  purpose  to  apply  for  it,  why  should  he 
be  restricted  at  all, — why  should  he  not  be 
permitted  to  fish  when  and  where,  and  for 
such  fish  as  he  pleases  ?  And  with  respect 
to  the  bounty,  if  a  certain  number  of  quin 
tals  per  ton  of  the  vessel  employed,  is  re 
quired  to  entitle  him  to  the  bounty,  and  if 
he  obtain  the  required  number  in  two  or 
three  months,  why  should  he  be  required 
to  fish  four  months  in  order  to  obtain  it  ? 
It  often  happens  that  the  required  amount 


262 


PETEE   GOTT, 


has  been  made  up  in  three  months,  and 
that  the  mackerel  have  become  plenty  on 
the  coast,  and  it  would  be  much  more  pro 
fitable  to  the  fishermen  to  engage  at  once 
in  that  branch  of  business.  But  the  law 
requires  them  to  make  out  four  months. 
Many  of  them  continue  in  the  cod  fishery 
and  make  out  the  four  months,  before 
engaging  in  the  mackerel  fishery  at  all; 
others  exchange  their  papers  at  the  cus 
tom-house,  and  exchange  their  gear,  and 
when  the  mackerel  season  is  over,  receive 
their  cod  fishing  papers  again,  and  make  up 
the  required  time.  But  this  occasions  trou 
ble  and  loss  of  time  to  the  fishermen,  and 
trouble  to  the  custom-house  officers,  and 
some  of  these  officers  refuse  to  accommo 
date  the  fishermen  in  this  way.  If  the  laws 
relating  to  the  fisheries  were  made  by  those 
who  understood  the  subject  in  all  its  rela 
tions,  there  would  be  no  difficulty  in  ar 
ranging  them  to  suit  the  convenience  and 
interests  of  all  parties  ;  but  when  they  are 
under  the  supervision  of  men  from  Missouri 
and  Illinois,  who  have  never  seen  a  fish- 


THE   CAPE  ANN   FISHERMAN.         263 

ing  vessel,  and  know  nothing  of  the  nature 
of  the  business  and  the  difficulties  attend 
ing  it,  what  better  can  be  expected  ?  If  it 
is  said  that  the  object  of  the  bounty  is  to 
make  good  seamen,  and  therefore  they 
should  be  required  to  be  at  sea  as  long  as 
possible,  it  may  be  truly  replied,  that  the 
mackerel  fishery,  as  at  present  carried  on, 
on  the  coast  of  the  British  Provinces  and 
in  the  midst  of  the  most  difficult  and  dan 
gerous  navigation,  is  the  best  possible 
school  for  seamen,  altogether  better  than 
the  Bank  fishery,  or  the  cod  fishery  upon 
our  own  coast ; — so  that  this  argument  en 
tirely  fails. 

After  getting  through  with  the  mullet 
business,  and  paying  the  losses  they  had 
incurred,  Mr.  Gott  and  his  son  engaged, 
with  renewed  vigor,  in  those  branches  of 
the  fisheries  which  they  had  previously 
pursued.  Sometimes  their  vessels  secured 
the  bounty  on  codfish;  sometimes  they 
made  no  attempt  to  obtain  it,  but  pursued 
that  branch  of  fishing  that  seemed  the  most 
promising  at  the  time.  They  employed 


264  PETER   GOTT, 

their  own  freighters  to  convey  their  fish  to 
market,  and  to  bring  home  the  goods  need 
ed  in  fitting  out  and  repairing  their  ves 
sels.  Occasionally  they  fitted  out  a  cargo 
of  fish  and  lumber  to  the  West  Indies,  and 
brought  back  in  return  rum,  molasses  and 
salt.  They  were  always  ready  to  engage 
in  any  new  enterprize  that  tended  to  pro 
mote  the  interests  of  the  fishermen,  or  to 
furnish  them  with  a  more  profitable  em 
ployment.  They  occasionally  lost  one  of 
their  vessels  at  sea  or  on  the  eastern  shores, 
and  among  the  vessels  which  they  fitted 
out  were,  every  year,  some  that  failed  of 
success.  But  by  honesty,  careful  manage 
ment  and  steady  enterprize,  they  gradually 
accumulated  wealth,  and  increased  their 
means  of  extending  their  business.  In  a 
few  years  they  became  the  most  reliable 
and  influential  firm  connected  with  the 
fishing  business  on  the  Cape. 

About  this  time  the  business  of  digging 
clams  was  engaged  in  by  a  large  number 
of  persons.  They  are  salted  and  preserved 
in  barrels,  and  used  by  fishermen  as  bait 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.         265 

for  codfish.  For  many  years  past,  the  dig 
ging  and  salting  of  clams  for  Boston  market 
has  been  an  important  business.  These 
shell-fish  abound  in  the  extensive  flats  at 
the  mouth  of  Squam  River,  Essex  River, 
and  Ipswich  River.  These  flats  are  daily 
covered  by  the  tide,  and  afford  the  feeding 
ground  which  the  clams  require.  They 
multiply  with  astonishing  rapidity.  They 
are  dug  in  the  winter  and  spring.  The  bu 
siness  furnishes  employment  for  men  and 
boys,  that  in  former  years  were  occupied 
in  winter  fishing.  The  work  is  done,  of 
course,  at  low  tide.  When  the  tide  is  out, 
on  pleasant  winter  days,  one  will  often  see 
gangs  of  ten,  twenty  or  fifty  men  and  boys 
busily  employed  in  turning  up  the  mud  on 
the  flats  and  picking  up  the  clams  into 
buckets.  The  implement  which  they  use 
is  a  stout  fork  with  three  flat  prongs,  each 
about  an  inch  wide  and  ten  or  twelve 
inches  long.  The  men  go  out  on  to  the 
flats,  in  wherries,  when  the  tide  is  retiring, 
and  push  an  oar  into  the  mud,  and  make 
fast  the  boat  to  it,  and  as  soon  as  the  water 

23 


266  PETER   GOTT, 

has  left  the  boat,  commence  operations. 
When  a  bucket  is  filled,  it  is  emptied  into 
the  boat.  They  continue  their  work  until 
the  tide  comes  in  again  sufficiently  to  float 
the  boat,  when  they  pull  to  the  wharf.  On 
many  places  on  the  shores  of  these  flats, 
there  are  groups  of  small  huts,  ten  or 
twelve  feet  square,  with  stone  chimneys 
running  up  on  the  outside,  furnished  within 
with  a  small  stove  and  two  or  three  stools 
for  seats.  The  clams  are  deposited  in  these 
huts,  and  in  those  parts  of  the  day  when 
the  tide  is  in,  so  that  the  men  cannot  work 
out  on  the  flats,  and  in  stormy  weather, 
they  are  employed  in  shocking  them,  as  it 
is  called,  that  is,  in  opening  the  shells  and 
taking  out  the  clam,  which  is  done  with  a 
small,  stout  knife.  As  the  clams  are  taken 
from  the  shell,  they  are  dropped  into  a 
bucket ;  when  the  bucket  is  filled,  it  is 
emptied  into  a  barrel.  Around  these  huts 
it  is  not  uncommon  to  see  heaps  of  clam 
shells  larger  than  the  huts  themselves,  the 
accumulations  of  the  winter's  labor.  The 
clam  diggers  sell  the  produce  of  their  labor 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         267 

to  traders,  who  send  their  teams  around  to 
the  huts,  weekly  or  daily,  according  to  the 
weather,  and  carry  them  to  their  store 
houses,  and  repack  and  salt  them,  and  head 
them  up  in  barrels,  when  they  are  ready 
for  the  market. 

The  business  is  one  that  exposes  the  men 
very  much  to  the  weather.  As  their  move 
ments  in  going  to  and  coming  from  the 
clam  flats  must  necessarily  be  governed  by 
the  tide,  they  often  go  out  or  return  in  the 
night.  The  weather  at  this  season,  too,  is 
very  changeable,  and  often,  when  out  upon 
the  flats  and  their  boats  aground,  a  storm 
of  snow  or  rain  is  driven  in  upon  them 
from  the  ocean  with  great  fury ;  sometimes 
they  are  thus  unexpectedly  drenched  with 
cold  rain  or  covered  with  snow  or  sleet. 
The  east  winds,  too,  that  blow  over  these 
flats,  sometimes  pierce  them  to  their  very 
bones.  They  have  no  shelter  but  such  as 
they  can  obtain  by  cowering  down  in  the 
mud  under  the  lee  of  their  boats.  Here 
they  must  remain  patiently  until  the  tide 
comes  to  float  them  off.  Sometimes  they 


268 


PETER    GOTT, 


leave  their  boats  on  the  flats,  and  make  the 
best  of  their  way  through  the  pools  and 
creeks  to  the  nearest  shore.  There  have 
been  many  instances  of  severe  exposure, 
not  only  of  health,  but  even  of  life,  among 
those  engaged  in  this  business.  In  early 
times,  when  the  fishermen  used  clams,  they 
dug  them  themselves.  When  purposing  to 
be  absent  several  days,  they  went  to  the 
clam  ground,  and  dug  a  few  buckets  of 
clams,  as  a  preliminary  step.  They  were 
not  in  the  habit  of  preserving  them  with 
salt.  In  later  times,  a  division  of  labor  wa»s 
found  more  convenient  and  profitable,  and 
the  procuring  of  clam  bait  became  a  busi 
ness  by  itself,  or  rather  a  separate  branch 
of  the  fishing  business. 

Gott  &  Son,  finding  that  the  supply  of 
bait  was  not  equal  to  the  demand,  proposed 
to  those  who  were  in  the  habit  of  frequent 
ing  the  flats,  to  take  all  they  would  dig 
during  the  winter,  and  pay  them  one  half 
in  cash,  and  one  half  in  goods.  These  men, 
now  finding  that  they  had  a  ready  and  sure 
market,  set  themselves  diligently  at  work ; 


THE   CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          269 

others  also  engaged  in  the  business,  in  pre 
ference  to  winter  fishing.  By  the  time  the 
opening  spring  brought  a  demand  for  bait 
to  be  carried  to  the  Banks,  they  had  accu 
mulated  more  than  five  hundred  barrels. 
The  purchasers  found  the  barrels  and  salt, 
and  paid  about  four  dollars  per  barrel.  In 
the  spring  they  readily  sold  for  six,  thus 
yielding  them  a  profit  of  about  one  dollar. 
This  business  they  carried  on  for  several 
years,  some  years  purchasing  from  one  to 
two  thousand  barrels,  thus  furnishing  em 
ployment  to  quite  a  number  of  families? 
and  deriving  a  fair  profit  to  themselves. 
In  every  new  enterprize  in  which  Mr.  Gott 
engaged,  he  had  reference  to  others  as  well 
as  to  himself.  He  sought  to  make  pro 
fitable  employment  for  the  laboring  men 
around  him,  for  he  believed  that  the  best 
way  to  help  others  was  to  furnish  them 
with  the  means  of  helping  themselves.  If 
all  who  are  charitably  disposed  would  adopt 
this  principle,  and  invest  their  money  in 
the  establishment  of  some  business  that 
would  furnish  steady  and  useful  employ- 

23* 


270  PETER    GO IT, 

inent  to  those  who  need  assistance,  how 
much  more  real  good  would  be  done  than 
by  bestowing  the  same  amount  in  charity. 
Not  only  would  the  individuals  thus  em 
ployed  be  benefited  in  a  much  greater 
degree,  but  the  whole  community  would 
derive  advantage  from  it  also.  There  are 
doubtless  many  cases  in  which  almsgiving, 
or  direct  acts  of  charity,  are  required  by 
every  principle  of  humanity;  but  where 
profitable  employment  is  furnished  to  the 
necessitous,  they  are  spared  the  degrada 
tion  which  accompanies  the  reception  of 
alms.  They  feel  that  they  render  an  equiv 
alent  for  what  they  receive.  They  acquire 
habits  of  industry,  if  they  were  wanting  in 
them  before,  and  learn  to  rely  upon  their 
own  exertions.  The  moral  good  thus  con 
ferred  upon  them  is,  in  most  cases,  of  more 
value  than  the  physical. 

Mr.  Gott,  through  the  whole  of  his  life, 
felt  a  deep  interest  in  the  class  of  men  from 
which  he  sprung,  and  especially  in  the 
young  men  wrho  were  coming  forward  into 
^fe.  He  was  a  careful  observer  of  charac- 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.         271 

ter.  Whenever  he  saw  a  young  man  in 
dustrious,  diligent  and  faithful,  and  disposed 
to  avail  himself  of  every  opportunity  to 
advance  himself,  he  was  always  ready  to 
aid  him,  and  to  put  him  into  the  situation 
to  which  he  thought  him  best  adapted. 
He  remembered  the  struggles  of  his  own 
boyhood,  and  the  kindnesses  he  had  receiv 
ed  from  his  old  friend  Dennis.  Not  all  who 
were  assisted  by  him  manifested  or  felt  the 
gratitude  which  he  felt  for  his  benefactor ; 
but  there  were  many  who  felt  their  obliga 
tions  to  him,  and  acknowledged  their  in 
debtedness  to  his  helping  hand.  Very 
many  of  the  young  men  in  his  neighbor 
hood  owed  their  success  in  after  life  to  the 
encouragement  and  assistance  which  they 
received  from  him.  His  kindness  to  the 
people  whom  he  employed,  and  the  confi 
dence  with  which  he  treated  them,  gene 
rally  ensured  their  fidelity.  There  is  no 
class  of  men  more  sensible  to  kindness  than 
seamen,  or  who  will  longer  remember  a 
favor  or  more  faithfully  requite  it.  Until 
they  have  been  hardened  and  brutalized 


272 


PETER    GOTT, 


by  severity  and  harsh  treatment,  there  are 
no  hearts  more  susceptible  of  tender  emo 
tions  and  kind  feelings  than  the  hearts  of 
the  sons  of  the  ocean. 

Young  Gott  had  now  become  extensively 
known  as  an  intelligent,  efficient,  and  up 
right  business  man.  He  had  a  young  fam 
ily  growing  up  around  him.  Mr.  Gott, 
having  secured  a  competence,  was  disposed 
gradually  to  retire  from  business  and  leave 
the  management  of  the  affairs  of  the  firm 
to  his  son.  That  he  might  the  more  read 
ily  carry  out  this  purpose,  he  purchased  a 
few  acres  of  land  about  half  a  mile  from 
the  Cove,  and  erected  a  house  and  barn 
upon  it,  and  removed  into  it  with  his 
family,  and  his  mother,  who  still  survived,- 
and  whom  he  ever  cared  for  with  most 
affectionate  and  filial  regard,  and  gave  up 
his  house  to  his  son.  Most  men,  as  they 
become  advanced  in  years,  acquire  a  fond 
ness  for  cultivating  the  soil.  After  having 
tried  other  occupations  with  more  or  less 
success,  they  find  in  this  an  occupation 
congenial  with  their  feelings,  thus  proving 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.         273 

that  this  is  the  most  natural  employment 
of  man.  Mr.  Gott  was  no  exception  to  this 
law.  He  had  for  several  years  found  much 
satisfaction  in  the  cultivation  of  a  little 
garden,  and  had  gradually  come  to  take 
much  interest  in  the  pursuits  and  successes 
of  the  few  farmers  in  his  neighborhood. 
The  land  upon  the  Cape  is  generally  hard 
and  rocky  ;  but  there  are  patches  of  fertile 
soil  lying  between  the  hills  and  ledges. 
Many  of  these,  by  persevering  labor,  have 
been  brought  under  cultivation.  When 
cleared  of  stones  and  subjected  to  the 
plough,  they  are  very  productive.  The 
seaweed  deposited  by  the  waves  on  the 
shore,  and  the  offal  of  the  fish,  afford  abun 
dant  means  of  enriching  the  soil.  There 
are  many  acres  thus  cultivated,  that  yield 
as  large  crops  as  any  land  in  the  county  of 
Essex.  Mr.  Gott  selected  about  four  acres 
of  such  soil.  He  took  from  the  surface 
stones  enough  to  enclose  the  field  with  a 
heavy,  substantial  wall.  In  a  few  years 
he  had  a  fertile  and  beautiful  field,  and  a 
fine  garden  well  stocked  with  apple,  pear 


274 


and  quince  trees.  In  the  cultivation  of 
this  garden  and  field,  he  took  great  pleas 
ure,  and  spent  much  time. 

But  he  did  not  wholly  withdraw  from  his 
business ;  he  daily  visited  the  store  and 
wharf,  and  kept  himself  fully  acquainted 
with  all  their  business  transactions,  and  ad 
vised  with  his  son  in  respect  to  every  trip 
that  was  to  be  made,  and  the  men  who 
were  to  be  employed.  He  kept  himself 
acquainted  with  the  state  of  the  books  and 
the  result  of  every  voyage.  In  the  insur 
ance  office,  of  which  he  had  now  for  many 
years  been  a  director,  his  opinion  was  much 
relied  upon,  with  regard  to  the  value  of 
vessels  and  the  rates  of  insurance  which 
each  should  pay.  No  man  understood  bet 
ter  than  he  the  value  of  all  property  in  the 
section  of  the  town  in  which  he  resided. 
He  was  chosen,  though  much  against  his 
will,  one  of  the  assessors  of  taxes,  for  many 
years  in  succession,  and  was  thus  compelled 
to  become  acquainted  with  the  affairs  of 
every  citizen  in  town.  This  is  an  office 
of  much  responsibility,  requiring  a  sound 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         275 

judgment  and  great  impartiality.  Both 
these  qualifications  he  possessed  in  a  high 
degree.  Tax-payers  occasionally  grumbled, 
as  indeed  some  always  will,  at  the  taxes 
assessed  upon  them ;  but  no  man  ever  se 
cured  more  fully  the  confidence  of  the  great 
majority  of  his  fellow  citizens  than  he. 
Hence  he  continued  to  serve  in  this  capa 
city  as  long  as  he  could  be  persuaded  to 
undergo  the  labor.  When  he  withdrew 
from  this  office,  he  was  selected  by  his 
fellow  citizens,  without  distinction  of  par 
ties,  to  represent  them  in  the  General  Court. 
With  great  diffidence  he  accepted  this  office. 
It  was  a  field  of  duty  with  which  he  was 
wholly  unacquainted ;  but  he  brought  to 
it  the  good  sense  and  honesty  of  purpose 
which  were  essential  parts  of  his  character, 
and  that  knowledge  of  human  nature  by 
which  he  was  enabled,  as  by  a  sort  of  intu 
ition,  to  judge  of  the  characters  of  those 
about  him.  Although  unacquainted  with 
the  forms  of  legislation,  he  readily  perceived 
the  bearing  of  measures  proposed  and  the 
motives  of  those  who  proposed  them.  He 


276  PETER    GOTT, 

had  been  in  the  legislature  but  a  few  weeks, 
before  he  had  secured  the  respect  of  all 
who  had  become  acquainted  with  him. 
His  sound  judgment,  and  the  modesty  with 
which  his  opinions  were  uttered,  gave  them 
much  weight. 

The  mackerel  fishery  had  now  become 
an  extensive  and  important  business,  and 
the  vessels  were  fitted  out  from  various 
establishments  on  the  Cape,  at  a  distance 
from  each  other.  Up  to  this  time  the  in 
spector-general  of  fish,  who  lived  in  Boston, 
had  appointed  but  two  or  three  deputies 
for  the  Cape.  It  often  happened  that  the 
interest  of  the  owners  required  that  mack 
erel  should  be  inspected  and  packed  at 
nearly  all  these  establishments,  at  the  same 
time.  But  the  small  number  of  deputy 
inspectors  rendered  this  impossible.  The 
office  was  one  of  considerable  emolument, 
each  deputy  receiving  nine  cents  for  every 
barrel  inspected  by  him.  Hence  the  depu 
ties  had  always  opposed  the  appointment 
of  a  larger  number.  Mr.  Gott,  always  re 
garding  the  interest  and  convenience  of  his 


THE    CAPE   ANN    FISHERMAN.          277 

constituents,  procured  an  alteration  in  the 
law  regulating  the  inspection  of  fish,  requir 
ing  the  inspector  to  appoint  as  many  dep 
uties  as  the  convenience  of  the  business 
required.  This  change  in  the  law  led  to 
the  appointment  of  some  ten  additional 
deputies,  which  proved  a  great  convenience 
to  all  concerned  in  the  business. 

Mr.  Gott  remained  in  the  legislature  two 
years,  at  the  end  of  which  he  declined  be 
ing  again  a  candidate  for  the  office,  and 
retired,  carrying  with  him  the  respect  and 
confidence  of  all  his  constituents.  This 
was  the  last  public  office  which  he  consent 
ed  to  fill.  He  now  purchased  a  few  acres 
more  of  land,  and  confined  his  attention 
chiefly  to  the  cultivation  of  the  soil.  His 
children  were  all  married,  and  settled  in 
the  vicinity.  They  and  their  numerous 
families  looked  up  to  him  with  reverence 
and  affection  ;  they  went  to  him  for  advice 
in  all  their  trials,  and  always  found  him 
ready  to  impart  to  them  not  only  the  coun 
sels  of  experience,  but  such  assistance  as 
their  circumstances  required.  He  cherish- 

24 


278  PETER    GOTT, 

ed  to  the  last  a  deep  interest  in  all  their 
affairs ;  and  when  his  children  and  grand 
children  assembled  around  him  on  Thanks 
giving  day,  as  they  continued  to  do  till  the 
close  of  his  days,  he  sat  among  them  like  a 
patriarch,  revered  and  beloved  ;  and  as  he 
looked  upon  them  his  heart  swelled  with 
emotions  of  gratitude  to  Him  who  had 
watched  over  all  his  steps,  supplied  all  his 
wants,  and  crowned  his  days  with  loving 
kindness  and  tender  mercy. 

His  venerable  mother  had  now  been 
dead  some  years.  She  lived  to  be  seventy- 
four  years  old,  and  retained  her  faculties 
and  her  activity  to  the  last,  and  her  inter 
est  in  her  numerous  descendants.  She 
was  beloved  by  them  all ;  and  when  they 
followed  her  to  the  grave,  it  was  with  the 
feeling  that  her  cheerful  voice,  her  ready 
assistance,  her  tender  sympathy,  and  her 
wise  and  pious  counsels  would  be  greatly 
missed  by  them  all.  All  who  were  ac 
quainted  with  her  felt  that  they  had  lost 
a  true  friend,  and  cherished  her  memory 
with  affectionate  regard. 


THE   CAPE   ANN   FISHERMAN.         279 

Mr.  Gott's  family  had  been  seldom  vis 
ited  with  sickness.  His  children  were  bless 
ed  with  good  constitutions.  They  grew  up 
with  habits  of  industry  and  diligence,  which 
were  followed  with  the  natural  reward  of 
cheerfulness  and  health.  Winning  their 
bread  by  cheerful  toil,  cherishing  mutual 
love  and  confidence,  and  contented  with 
their  condition,  few  families  enjoyed  a 
greater  share  of  happiness. 

But  man  is  born  to  die ;  and  in  whatever 
path  he  may  walk  through  life,  his  steps 
tend  to  the  grave.  Mr.  Gott  now  approach 
ed  the  close  of  his  well-spent  life.  His 
work  was  done.  He  had  for  some  time 
withdrawn  from  the  business  of  the  firm, 
and  given  it  up  entirely  to  his  oldest  son, 
who  had  become  a  highly  respectable  and 
useful  man,  and  enjoyed  the  perfect  con 
fidence  of  the  community  around  him. 
Early  in  March  he  took  a  cold,  which  was 
followed  with  some  inflammation  of  his 
lungs,  and  a  slight  cough,  which  gave  his 
friends  but  little  anxiety  at  first.  After  a 
few  days,  however,  his  appetite  failed,  and 


280  PETER    GOTT. 

his  strength  yielded  to  the  progress  of  the 
disease,  and  it  became  apparent  that  lie 
must  soon  cease  to  be  an  actor  in  ••  the 
scenes  of  life.  He  called  his  children  and 
friends  around  him,  and  gave  to  each  a 
kind  parting  word,  and  laid  HJrnself  down 
for  his  final  repose. 

In  a  few  days  his  remains  wfere  followed 
to  the  tomb  by  a  long  profession  of  his 
weeping  kindred  and  friends,  who  were 
joined  by  hundreds  of  his  f^low  citizens 
from  all  parts  of  th<$  Cape,  in  this  last  trib 
ute  of  affection  and 'respect.  His  example 
and  his  virtues  are  still  held  in  affectionate 
remembrance  by  the  fishermen  of  the  Cape, 
and  no  name  is  spoken  by  ;them  with  more 
respect  and  veneration  than  the  name  of 
PETER  GOTT. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN   DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


RY 


U-lOOm-6,'56 
llslO)476 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


